Investors Lose N160bn as Apathy for Stocks Dwindles

By Dipo Olowookere Local equities rebounded by 0.34 per cent on Wednesday on the back of buying pressure on a few energy stocks and others at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited. According to data from the bourse, the bullish stance was attained despite profit-taking activities in the banking space amid plans by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to recapitalise the industry, leaving the market breadth index negative. This was because the number of price losers was more than the price gainers at 39 and 19 apiece, indicating a weak investor sentiment. Business Post reports that the energy counter grew

By Adedapo Adesanya The boards of insurance companies operating in the country have been charged by the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) to embrace the measures put in place to tackle the challenges of unpaid claims. The Commissioner for Insurance, Mr Sunday Thomas, expressed worry over the number of outstanding claims in the sector despite efforts by the regulator to address the issue. Mr Thomas, who is also the chief executive of NAICOM, said the organisation, in collaboration with members of the Insurers’ Committee, has taken decisions and incepted measures designed to tame the menace of unpaid claims. Speaking at the

By Adedapo Adesanya President Bola Tinubu is targeting to grow Nigeria’s economy by 3.76 per cent next year and moderate the country’s inflation to 21.4 per cent. Speaking at his first budget speech to lawmakers on Wednesday, President Tinubu also projected higher oil production and tax collection, noting that this will boost government revenues and cut down on reliance on borrowing to finance budget deficits. Nigeria plans on spending N27.5 billion in the 2024 fiscal year, with priorities on security, infrastructure and easing the high cost-of-living crisis. The country will borrow around N9 trillion and N18.5 billion generated from internally

By Adedapo Adesanya The Lagos State Government has announced that bed occupancy in the state’s public and private COVID-19 care centres has reduced from 60 per cent to 8 per cent. This was disclosed by the Commissioner for Health, Professor Akin Abayomi, via his verified Twitter account @ProfAkinAbayomi on Thursday while giving the state’s COVID-19 update for March 15. The Commissioner said that from the beginning of February, there had been a decline in bed occupancy rate at both private and public COVID-19 Lagos care centres. According to him, five out of the 11 private and public care centres in

By Adedapo Adesanya The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved a $120 million loan to fund the construction of a 50 megawatts hydropower plant in western Tanzania, the bank has said. The Malagarasi hydropower project will provide reliable renewable energy to households, schools, clinics and small and medium-sized enterprises in Kigoma region, the AfDB said in a statement. The project’s overall cost is estimated at $144.14 million while the bulk of the $120 million will be sourced from the bank group’s sovereign window, with an additional $20 million contributed by the Africa Growing Together Fund. The government of Tanzania will

By Adedapo Adesanya President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday signed the Nigeria Start-Up Bill into law at the State House, Abuja. The bill seeks to create and develop an enabling environment for technology-enabled startups in the country. The bill, which was approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) in December 2021 and passed by the National Assembly in July 2022, is a collaborative effort of the Presidency, the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, the Nigerian Export and Promotion Council and other government agencies. The Senate, on July 20, following a report by the Senate Committee on ICT and Cybersecurity

By Dipo Olowookere Shareholders of Sterling Bank Plc will get a cash dividend of 3 kobo for each stock of the company held by shareholders of the organisation as at the close of business of Monday, May 4, 2020. The disclosure was made on Thursday by the board of the mid-tier bank after it released the financial statements of the company for the year ended December 31, 2019. The lender said while it would close its register of members from May 5 to 8, 2020, the payment would be done on May 20, 2020, advising shareholders to update their records

By Dipo Olowookere Wife of President Muhammadu Buhari, Mrs Aisha Buhari, on Thursday, December 15, 2016, donated bags of rice and cartons of liquid milk to the Christian community in Abuja for Christmas. In her address on the occasion, she said that the donation was to support the Christian families of the First Baptist Church in FCT, Abuja. Mrs Buhari, who was represented by Mrs Dolapo Osinbajo, the wife of the Vice-President, said the kind gesture was done out of passion and love. “The Bible says how good and pleasant it is when God makes us enjoy together in unity.

By Modupe Gbadeyanka A tech company in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State known as Classified Market Limited has launched a safe and secure platform for Nigerians to buy and sell their products and services with ease online. A statement issued by the firm disclosed that its platform offers new users the opportunity buy and sell in over 100+ categories ranging from cars and vehicles to real estate and job vacancy listing. According to Classified Market Limited, with its integrated advanced search system, users can easily search for any products or service they want in any specific location and category within a

By Adedapo Adesanya Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have apprehended one Mr Okeke Adolphus Anayochukwu with black liquid cocaine at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja. This was disclosed in a statement on Sunday by the Director of Media and Advocacy of the NDLEA, Mr Femi Babafemi. According to the statement, the 52-year-old father of four, who claimed to be a businessman, selling children’s wares, was arrested with 20.75 kilograms of the black liquid cocaine on Tuesday, March 15, upon his arrival at the Abuja airport onboard a Qatar Airways flight from Sao Paulo, Brazil through

By Dipo Olowookere Mr Paul McGrath has been announced as the new Chairman and Managing Director of ExxonMobil Nigeria. A statement issued Friday by the company’s Manager of Media and Communication, Mr Ogechukwu Udeagha, disclosed that the appointment of Mr McGrath takes effect from Wednesday, March 1, 2017. It was revealed that Mr McGrath is taking over from Mr Nolan O’Neal, who retires after 34 years of service. According to the statement, Mr McGrath was a senior executive in charge of project execution for ExxonMobil Development Company, based in Houston, Texas. He joined ExxonMobil in 1999 and had held a