FICAN Chairman Seeks Support for Befitting Secretariat

By Adedapo Adesanya The average price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), otherwise known as petrol, surged by 230.8 per cent on a year-to-year basis to N626.70 per litre in August 2023 versus N189.46 per litre in the same period of 2022. This is according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in its Premium Motor Spirit (Petrol) Price Watch (August 2023), which showed that the average retail price increased on a month-on-month basis by 4.39 per cent from N600.3 per litre in July. The skyrocketing cost of petrol came as President Bola Tinubu, during his inauguration speech on May 29,

By Adedapo Adesanya President Bola Tinubu has been charged by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) to investigate the allegations that over $15 billion of oil revenues and N200 billion budgeted to repair the refineries are missing and unaccounted for between 2020 and 2021, as documented by the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI). In the letter dated September 23 and signed by SERAP deputy director, Mr Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation urged him to “name and shame anyone suspected to be responsible for the missing and unaccounted for public funds and to ensure their effective prosecution as well as

By Adedapo Adesanya The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) has disclosed that Nigeria saw a 65.7 per cent or N76.77 billion increase in earnings from the solid minerals sector in 2021 to N193.59 billion from the N116.82 billion achieved in 2020. This upward trajectory has been on for the past five years, according to a report from the agency. The Executive Secretary of NEITI, Mr Orji Ogbonnaya Orji, however, lamented that this is still abysmal considering the potential of the sector to the Nigerian economy. He said this while presenting the solid minerals sector report in Abuja, noting that

By Investors Hub Asian stocks rose on Monday as strong U.S. jobs data helped investors shrug off renewed concerns over an escalating U.S.-China trade dispute. U.S. jobs increased more than expected in June but slowing wage growth helped reduce the probability of another Fed rate hike for September. China’s Shanghai Composite Index spiked 68.28 points or 2.5 percent to 2,815.51 after the U.S. punitive tariffs on Chinese goods kicked in and Beijing retaliated with equivalent measures. The yuan also rebounded ahead of trade data due later this week. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rallied 372.88 points or 1.3 percent to

By Dipo Olowookere The secondary market for the trading of treasury bills in Nigeria ended bearish on Monday as a result of a further liquidity squeeze from a wholesale foreign exchange sale by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), which spurred selling interests at the market across the tenors. Business Post observed that yesterday, the most selling interests were on the short end of the curve as reflected in the rise in the yield of the 3-month debt instrument, by 1.13 percent, the highest on Monday. The bill closed at 13.30 percent yesterday. Yield on the one-month tenor appreciated on

By Ashemiriogwa Emmanuel No fewer than 100 passengers have died during the course of using waterways as means of transportation across the country between May and September 2021. This, together with reports of over 300 waterways fatalities in 2020, and other recent unfortunate accidents have caused lawmakers of the lower chamber of the National Assembly to raise concerns. At the plenary on Tuesday, October 12, 2021, presided over by the Speaker, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila, the House of Representatives urged the Federal Ministry of Transportation and its agencies to enforce safety regulations in all waterways in Nigeria. The green chamber also

By Investors Hub European stocks are broadly lower on Wednesday, with modest weakness visible in the U.K. on news Prime Minister Boris Johnson is looking to suspend parliament from around mid-September. The BBC reported that the Queen will be asked to suspend the U.K.’s Parliament days after lawmakers return from a summer break on September 3rd. Under the plan by Johnson, all business would be suspended until a Queen’s speech on October 14 kicks off a new parliamentary session. The pound fell nearly 1.1 percent against a basket of global currencies, marking its worst performance since late July. While the

By Adedapo Adesanya The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Monday, January 7, introduced a multiple-entry visa scheme valid for five years for all nationalities, with the aim of turning the Gulf state into a tourism hub. The announcement was made by Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, vice-president and prime minister of the UAE and ruler of Dubai, after his first cabinet meeting for the new year. Mr Maktoum said the new policy was part of plans to turn one of the most visited countries into a tourism hub and to establish it as a major global tourist destination. “#UAE

By Dipo Olowookere Chairman of Berger Paints Nigeria Plc, Mr Oladimeji Alo, has resigned his appointment to pursue other endeavours. The firm, in a statement issued yesterday, disclosed that the resignation was effective from Thursday, June 7, 2018. Mr Alo joined the board of Berger Paints as an Independent Director on December 11, 2012 and was appointed as Chairman on July 17, 2014. Under his leadership, the board implemented a number of initiatives aimed at strengthening the company for the challenges of competing in the 21st century. Mr Alo is the Managing Director of Excel Professional Services, an Independent Director

By Dipo Olowookere The Human Rights Watch (HRW) has urged government of the Democratic Republic of Congo to protect civilians in Beni from attacks. Unidentified fighters have killed nearly 700 civilians in a series of massacres that began two years ago in Beni territory in eastern DRC, the HRW said on Friday. In one of the largest recent attacks, on August 13, 2016, fighters killed at least 40 people and set fire to several homes in the Rwangoma neighbourhood in the town of Beni, despite a large presence of Congolese army soldiers and United Nations peacekeepers. “The Congolese government and

By Dipo Olowookere Investors at the nation’s stock market lost N277 billion on Monday as some of them in Lagos and Abuja get ready for the total lockdown from Tuesday as announced by President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday in his nationwide broadcast. The two major cities would be under lock and key for 14 days and if the reason for the action, coronavirus diseases (COVID-19) remains undefeated, the stay-at-home order might be extended by the federal government. But in order not to be trapped financially, some traders quickly sold off some stocks in their portfolios and the banking sector was