BREAKING: Tinubu Removes Fuel Subsidy

By Adedapo Adesanya The Chairman of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, has cleared the air regarding recent reports on the transfer of funds to the Joint Tax Board (JTB) by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) under the erstwhile chairman, Mr Muhammad Nami, for the tax reform committee. In a statement on Friday, he revealed that N5 billion was paid to the board to fund activities of the team set up by President Bola Tinubu, noting that “The committee’s budget includes provisions for a national Data for Tax project which the JTB had been

By Adedapo Adesanya The Naira appreciated against the US Dollar in the Investors and Exporters (I&E), the Peer-to-Peer (P2P), and the black market arms of the foreign exchange (forex) market on Friday, September 29, as a turbulent third quarter ended. In the official segment, the local currency improved its value against the greenback by 2.6 per cent or N20.04 to close at N755.27/$1, in contrast to the preceding day’s N775.31/$1 amid a drop in the supply of FX into the system by 11.6 per cent or $16.73 million to $127.82 million from the $144.55 million published on Thursday. In the

By Adedapo Adesanya VFD Group Plc has been officially delisted from the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange months after the proprietary investment company revealed its intention to list its stocks on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited. The bourse on Thursday confirmed the development in a notice seen by Business Post. “Pursuant to the company’s request to delist from the NASD OTC Exchange, we wish to inform you that VFD Group PLC shares will be delisted with effect from the close of business (COB) today, Thursday, September 28, 2023,” the notice read. Last Friday, after three years of trading on the

By Adedapo Adesanya The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange rose by 0.38 per cent on Friday, September 30, with N4.16 billion added to the value of the bourse, closing at N1.105 trillion compared with Thursday’s value of N1.101 trillion. The market witnessed the improvement a day after the shares of VFD Group were yanked off the trading platform, with the NASD Unlisted Securities Index (NSI) closing higher by 3.06 points to settle at 815.65 basis points versus the previous day’s 812.59 basis points. There were three gainers led by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc, which improved by N1.31 to close at

By Adedapo Adesanya Crude oil prices dropped on Wednesday after the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported that crude oil inventories in the United States rose for another week. The global benchmark crude, Brent, lost 53 cents or 0.77 per cent to sell at $67.86 per barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) shed 36 cents or 0.56 per cent to trade at $64.44 per barrel. The EIA, which serves as an official authority for crude usage, reported an oil inventory build of 2.4 million barrels for the week to March 12. Although there was a rise, it is down

By Adedapo Adesanya The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Gusau Depot, has threatened to stop transporting petroleum products within Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara and parts of Katsina state. According to the IPMAN’s Zonal Chairman, Mr Yahya Kamba, the threat came following the federal government’s failure to settle its N40 billion outstanding payment to IPMAN members. According to Mr Kamba, the payment is based on importation and transportation claims of up to 11 months. He said the federal government has reneged on the agreement reached with the association. “It is not a subsidy,” Mr Kamba said, explaining that. “It is

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Rising from its last Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting for the year today, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced that the committee has resolved to retain the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) at 14 percent. Governor of the CBN, Mr Godwin Emefiele, while briefing newsmen of outcome of the meeting on Tuesday in Abuja, explained that reducing the rate at this moment may not be the best thing to do. This news comes a day after the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) revealed that the nation’s economy grew by 1.4 percent in the third quarter of this

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Minister of Water Resources, Mr Suleiman Adamu, has charged the top management of the ministry and its agencies to re-double their efforts towards contributing to the realisation of the vision of President Muhammadu Buhari’s promise of lifting 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in 10 years. The Minister said one of the ways of achieving this was to key into federal government’s plan of diversifying the economy to guarantee food security and create employment opportunities for the citizens. He said the Ministry has initiated National Irrigation Development Programme which is aimed at establishing 100,000 hectares of irrigated

By Aduragbemi Omiyale As the 2021 International Women’s Day (IWD21) calls on people and organisations to #choosetochallenge for a better world for women, Guaranty Trust Bank plc (GTBank) has launched an initiative, tagged #GiveHerBetaHealth, to draw attention to the need for universal essential healthcare coverage, especially for women in the informal sector. Through the initiative, the leading African financial institution is providing 1000 self-employed women with BetaHealth for a year, at no cost. Launched in 2020, BetaHealth is a low-cost healthcare package that provides coverage for essential health services such as malaria treatments, pre and postnatal care, accidents and, medical

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Transactions at the stock market improved last week when compared with the previous week, data from the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has shown. In the week, 1.3 billion shares worth N13.9 billion were traded by market participants in 19,392 deals compared with 1.1 billion stocks valued at N10.8 billion transacted a week earlier in 20,482 deals. Analysis indicated that the financial services industry led the activity chart by volume with 886.6 million units worth N8.4 billion traded in 10,161deals, accounting for 66.79 per cent and 60.00 per cent of the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.

***Begs Buhari to intervene By Dipo Olowookere Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state have been accused of having hands in the death of an activist lawyer, Mr Ken Atsuete, in Port Harcourt, the state capital, on Monday. Mr Atsuete was a strong opposition voice in the state before his gruesome murder yesterday. Making the blame, the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State, in a statement, alleged that, “Governor Wike and his PDP gang of vampires in Rivers State have once again exhibited the only act of governance known to them

By Ayo Akinduro She was twelve and happy. She had just changed her school to a better one and was excited about it. The school demanded for a recent passport photograph and that was what she was about to get. She ran two flights up the shopping complex, never had the patience to walk on any staircase; she either ran or jumped as is expected from a twelve year old girl. She stopped in front of a shop that was painted yellow and had a big banner just above the door that read; “1 min Digital Passport – Wait and