CCECC Connects Lagos-Ibadan Rail to Apapa Port

By Aduragbemi Omiyale A workshop designed to educate investors, especially those in the retail end of the curve, on how they can improve corporate governance has been organised by the Nigerian Exchange Regulation (NGX RegCo) Limited. The two-day event, which took place on Thursday, November 23, and Friday, November 24, 2023, was themed Rights and Responsibilities of Shareholders in Driving Corporate Governance. According to the NGX RegCo, the seminar was designed to promote a transparent and fair market, with participants agreeing that all hands must be on deck to sanitize the market and bring the boards and management of listed

By Adedapo Adesanya The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Mr Dele Alake, has assured foreign investors of low production costs as they consider investing in the country’s mining sector. Speaking at the Mines and Money Conference in London, Mr Alake said President Bola Tinubu has embarked on reforms to boost investment by streamlining procedures and reducing hurdles to attract foreign investors. “The country’s geological bounty encompasses over 44 distinct mineral types, found in exploitable quantities across more than 500 locations,” the Minister said, according to a statement by his aide, Mr Kehinde Bamigbetan. “Recently, recognizing the evolving global landscape and

By Adedapo Adesanya  Oil prices rose by more than $1 a barrel on Wednesday as investors focused their attention on an upcoming OPEC+ output policy meeting and looked past a jump in crude stockpiles in the United States. Brent crude futures were up by $1.01 or 1.2 per cent to $82.69 per barrel, and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained $1.16 or 1.5 per cent to close at $77.57 a barrel. Prices were lifted by a media report that the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies such as Russia, known collectively as OPEC+, was considering

By Dipo Olowookere The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited retreated by 0.44 per cent on Tuesday due to selling pressure on some bellwether equities during the session. Shares of Dangote Cement, GTCO, Zenith Bank, Access Holdings, Oando, Lafarge Africa and others experienced a pullback yesterday as a result of profit-taking activities by traders. As a result, the All-Share Index (ASI) receded by 312.76 points to 71,041.05 points from 71,353.81 points and the market capitalisation moderated by N165 billion to N38.875 trillion from N39.040 trillion. The level of activity at the market waned on the second trading session of the week, as

By Dipo Olowookere **Says Tobacco Kills 1.9 million People Yearly About 1.9 million people die from tobacco-induced heart disease every year, while smokeless tobacco is responsible for around 200,000 deaths from coronary heart disease per year, with e-cigarettes raising blood pressure and increases the risk of cardiovascular disease, a study has shown. Ahead of the World Heart Day, marked on September 29, tobacco users have been urged to take immediate action and quit smoking so as to reduce their risk of heart disease by 50 per cent after one year. Also, governments have been urged to help tobacco users quit

By Dipo Olowookere Local government councils in Kwara State have been dissolved by the state Governor, Mr Abdulfatah Ahmed. A statement signed by the Secretary to the Government of Kwara State, Mr Sola Isiaka Gold, disclosed that the affected councils are Asa, Baruten, Edu, Ekiti, Ifelodun, Ilorin East, Ilorin West, Ilorin South, Irepodun, Isin, Kaiama, Moro, Offa, Oke-Ero, Oyun and Pategi. According to him, the action, contained in the Kwara State Legal Notices No.4-19, was in exercise of the Governor’s power conferred on him by section 18(5) (c) of the Kwara State Local Government Law (as amended) cap K33, Laws

By Dipo Olowookere Otunba Gbenga Daniel (OGD) has been elected president of the Nigerian-Finnish Business Council. Mr Daniel, a former Governor of Ogun State, succeeds former occupier of the position, late Ambassador Segun Olusola, who died on June 21, 2012. The new president of the council is the Chairman of Kresta Laurel Limited, a top engineering firm in Nigeria. The Nigerian-Finnish Business Council was established to foster business relationship between Nigerian companies and their counterparts in Finland with the goal of encouraging trade and investment. Mr Daniel governed Ogun State on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from

By Ebitonye Akpodigha Some lawyers staged a peaceful protest in Abuja on Monday to kick against the arrest of some judges by operatives of the Department for State Services (DSS). The lawyers, in their large number, took to the streets of Abuja, calling on the DSS to stop intimidating the judiciary. The demonstrators carried placards with various inscriptions, including ‘nobody is above the law, rule of law must be respected’, ‘attack on judges who granted bail on bailable offences against government wish is an attempt to silence the judiciary’, ‘we reject the plot to intimidate the judiciary’ among others. Few

The need to embrace peace and unity in Africa has been emphasised by the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III. Mr Abubakar, while receiving the Liberian Vice President, Mr Joseph Boakai, at his palace in Sokoto on Sunday, said “Nigeria will continue to do everything humanly possible to ensure that stability stays in Africa.” He further said, “We will also continue to work together to entrench peace, unity, democracy and inter-faith harmony in Africa. “The Federal Government is also committed to lending support to Liberia, at all times.” The respected monarch said Nigeria had committed men and resources to

By Modupe Gbadeyanka One of the leading insurance firms in Nigeria, AIICO Insurance Plc, has declared a profit of N10.2 billion for the year 2016. In its 2016 full year financial statements, the company said a total of N27.1 billion was made as gross revenue compared with N32.9 billion it achieved in 2015. It noted that its profit before tax as at December 31, 2016 stood at N11.8 billion in contrast to N1.8 billion as at December 31, 2015. For the payment of tax during the year under review, the insurance firm paid N1.6 billion against N600 million paid a

By Adedapo Adesanya The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has released a list containing 237 organisations eligible to seek different federal government contracts in 2020. The agency explained that the companies were issued compliance certificates after meeting requirements on regulations concerning their employees’ contributions as contained in the pension’s law. The law, the Pension Refund Act 2014, requires firms to contribute a certain percentage of money to match up with the employees’ contribution for retirement savings and up-to-date contribution is required from companies to meet PenCom’s requirements to qualify for government contracts. As a result of meeting the compliance quota, PenCom

By Adedapo Adesanya The Naira appreciated against the US Dollar at the Investors and Exporters (I&E) window of the foreign exchange market on Thursday, October 6. Yesterday, the exchange rate of the local currency against the greenback closed at N436.63/$1 compared with the previous day’s value of N437.50/$1, indicating a strengthening of 87 Kobo or 0.02 per cent. Data from the FMDQ Securities Exchange showed that the value of transactions recorded at the spot market during the session increased by 43.1 per cent or $30.32 million to $100.74 million from Wednesday’s $70.42 million. Also, in the black market, the domestic