Dollar Shortage Devalues Naira to N430/$1 at Black Market

By Adedapo Adesanya Crude oil prices fell on Thursday members of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) agreed to voluntary output cuts for the first quarter of next year, falling short of market expectations. As a result, Brent crude futures lost 27 cents or 0.3 per cent to close at $82.83 per barrel, and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures went down by $1.90 or 2.4 per cent to $75.96 a barrel. On a monthly basis, Brent fell by 5.2 per cent while WTI was down by 6.2 per cent. Saudi Arabia, Russia

By Aduragbemi Omiyale The online stock trading platform of one of the leading brokerage firms in Nigeria, Morgan Capital Securities Limited, i-Trade, has experienced a technical glitch. This technical issue has made it difficult for its clients to carry out transactions on the popular platform. Morgan Capital’s i-Trade platform is popular among retail investors in the Nigerian capital market, especially those trading equities on the floor of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited, because of its lower fees. The company has already assured its customers that it was working to restore services, providing an alternative to them. “This is to inform

By Adedapo Adesanya The Naira put up a weak performance against the United States Dollar across the various segments of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Thursday. November 30, 2023, the last trading session of the month. In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) window, which is the official market, the Nigerian currency lost 0.1 per cent or 85 Kobo against the greenback during the session to settle at N832.32/$1 compared with the preceding day’s value of N831.47/$1. A slight strain in the supply of forex into the spot market was partly responsible for the weakening of the local

By Dipo Olowookere The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited commenced the first trading session in December 2023 on a bullish note, with a marginal growth of 0.08 per cent. Sustained buying pressure kept Nigerian stocks in the positive territory, extending the dominance of the bulls on Customs Street, though the turnover waned. Business Post observed that investors cherry-picked equities in the banking and the energy sectors during the session, leaving them rising by 1.14 per cent and 0.05 per cent, respectively. However, the insurance counter lost 1.10 per cent, the consumer goods index depreciated by 0.08 per cent, and the industrial

By Adedapo Adesanya The Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA) has secured an anchor tenant, Ash Biomedical Diagnostics Limited, ready to invest initial $100 million capital in the production of a variety of medical equipment in the freshly approved Medical/Pharmaceutical Special Free Zone in Lekki, Lagos. This was hinted at by Mr Adesoji Adesugba, NEPZA Managing Director, after a meeting with the company’s team led by its Managing Director/CEO, Mr Ade Shodeinde in Abuja. Mr Adesugba said that the breakthrough hinged on the authority’s relentless investment campaigns and drives across targeted investment potentials within and outside of the country. The

By Aduragbemi Omiyale A provisional licence has been issued by the federal government for the operation of the proposed inland dry port (IDP) in Edo State. The facility, which will be managed by Atlantique Marine and Engineering Services (AMES) Limited, is to be called the AMES Edo Inland Dry Port. The Edo State government will also be part of the operators. The integrated dry port will have two Truck Transit Parks (TTP) infrastructure strategically located at the Benin Bypass in Edo South and at Aviele in Edo North. Recently, officials of the Federal Ministry of Transportation and the Nigerian Shippers’

By Adedapo Adesanya The Naira suffered significant losses against the United States Dollar on Monday in the different segments of the foreign exchange (FX) market ahead of the expected hike in the benchmark interest rate on Tuesday. On Monday, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) commenced, and the outcome of the gathering is expected today. It is the first after Mr Godwin Emefiele was suspended as the central bank chief last month. In the Investors and Exporters (I&E) window, the Nigerian currency lost 1.83 per cent or N19.22 against the greenback to close

In its report highlighting the impact of women on Nigeria’s economic development, PwC Nigeria, Advisory Partner and Chief Economist, Andrew Nevin, indicated that women account for 41 per cent of the ownership of micro-businesses in Nigeria, with 23 million female entrepreneurs operating within this segment. The strong entrepreneurial spirit of women no doubt makes them a major force in the contribution of the micro business sector to Nigeria’s GDP. 90 per cent of Nigeria’s retail market transactions according to reports are estimated to be worth $100 billion out of which the food and consumer goods retail market alone accounts for

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Popular Nigerian comedian, Mr Bright Okpocha, otherwise known as Basketmouth, has announced an end to his marriage to his wife, Elsie Uzoma. The showbiz star disclosed the crash to his union with Elsie in a post on his verified Facebook page on Thursday, stating that it was a “difficult” decision. However, he did not give any reason for the breakup but assured his fans that they would continue to work together for the growth of their children. “As much as it pains me to bring my personal life to the public space, this is an unavoidable situation.

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Marriot International has announced the opening of its second hotel in the ‘World’s Wildlife Capital’, Four Points by Sheraton Nairobi Airport, further consolidating its presence in Kenya. Strategically situated within the main complex of the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, the hotel is within easy reach from major highways and overlooks the famous Nairobi National Park. It perfectly complements the Four Points by Sheraton Nairobi Hurlingham, located in the city’s central business district which opened earlier this year. “Four Points by Sheraton Nairobi Airport is a great addition to our East Africa portfolio and strengthens our rapidly growing

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Principals of public secondary schools in Oyo State have been charged to be alive to their responsibilities of moulding Nigeria’s future by building improved educational standards in the state. The Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Mr Rahman Abiodun Abdu-Raheem, stressed that the heads of secondary schools must ensure proper training of every child that passes through them. Speaking when he hosted the executive council of the All Nigeria Confederation of Principals of Secondary Schools (ANCOPSS) on Thursday, in Ibadan, the Commissioner also advised teachers to place a premium on holistic education to build academic and moral

By Adedapo Adesanya The production output from 13 of Nigeria’s 29 crude oil terminals declined drastically between July and September 2022, according to data from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC). According to the NUPRC data, the worst-hit crude terminals were Bonny, Brass, and Forcados, which saw production output decline by 79 per cent, 40.5 per cent, and 96.5 per cent, respectively, during the period under review. Of the three terminals, Forcados terminal recorded the highest loss, from over 3 million barrels in July to a little over 100,000 barrels in September. Similarly, crude oil output from Bonny was