Naira Slumps to N770/$1 at P2P, N750/$1 at Parallel Market

By Adedapo Adesanya The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange closed Week 39 mixed as the unlisted securities index rose by 0.83 per cent, while the market capitalisation depreciated by 2.63 per cent after VFD Group Plc finally delisted after three years of trading on the platform. According to data from the bourse, the NASD index went up by 6.70 points to 815.65 points from 808.95 points, while the value of the exchange shrank by N30 billion to N1.110 trillion from N1.140 trillion. In the week, Nipco Plc improved its value by 9.8 per cent to close at N95.00 per share

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Nigeria’s business activity improved in September despite cost pressures limiting demand, according to the latest Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) released by Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc. The lender said in the period under review, the private sector had a reading of 51.1 points compared with the 50.2 points achieved in August 2023. It was the rise in business activity in the country was influenced by the growth in order, though the rates of expansion in each were only modest. New orders increased for the sixth month running in September as some firms signalled an improvement in demand. While

By Dipo Olowookere The board of Capital Hotels Plc has announced the creation of an escrow account for the payment of about N1.6 billion to minority shareholders of the company. The hospitality firm is leaving the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited after years on the nation’s main stock exchange. In a notice signed by Alex Ugwuanyi, the organisation said the account was created with CardinalStone Registrars Limited and has been sufficiently funded for payment “to shareholders” who “have accepted to exit” the firm by selling their holdings. Recall that in March 2023, shareholders of Capital Hotels approved the request of the

By Dipo Olowookere Yesterday, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) conducted the second Open Market Operations (OMO) for the week. During the exercise, the apex bank mopped up excess liquidity worth N364.98 billion from the system to curb inflation. From the exercise, the central bank sold N23 million worth of the 91-day bill from the N100 billion offered to investors at 11.50 percent. Also, the bank raked N78.67 from the 182-day note after auctioning N150 billion worth of the instrument and receiving subscriptions valued at N79.67 billion. This cleared at 13 percent, the same rate during Tuesday’s exercise. In addition,

By Investors Hub European stocks have moved to the upside on Friday after falling the most in nine months in the previous session on the back of hawkish commentary from central banks. While the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.5 percent, the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.1 percent and the German DAX Index is just above the unchanged line. Lufthansa has moved higher on reports the airline is boosting its technology offering to meet the needs of its customers in 2020. Subsea 7 has also moved higher after it agreed to take over certain business

By Dipo Olowookere Shark fins have been discovered on two Chinese fishing vessels during a joint surveillance conducted by Greenpeace and Guinean fishery authorities. One of the vessels also had illegally altered fishing nets on board, while a third Chinese vessel was caught using illegal nets and fishing for species outside of its license. The two vessels with shark fins on board have been fined with €250,000 each, while the third vessel has been fined with €350,000. The catch of all vessels have been seized by Guinean authorities. Apart from the shark fins, Greenpeace also found numerous carcasses of sharks

For the second straight year, a Nigerian company, Dangote Group, has emerged as the most admired African brand, of African continent origin, by consumers ahead of the telecommunication giant, MTN in a survey of 100 Africa best brands announced in Johannesburg at the weekend. According to the South Africa based Brand Africa in a survey carried out in collaboration with the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), the seventh edition which was released at the weekend, of 15,000 brands mentioned, Dangote ranked first brand when consumers are prompted to recall the most admired African brand. In the top 100 list, the United

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele, has disclosed that inflation rate in the country is expected to fall to a single digit, most likely 9 percent, by the middle of 2018. According to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) this month, inflation in Nigeria dropped to 15.98 percent in September 2017 from 16.01 percent in August 2017. It was the eighth consecutive decline in the rate of headline year-on-year inflation since January 2017. The inflation was almost climbing to 20 percent before the steady decline since the beginning of this

By Dipo Olowookere The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for the second straight day failed to conduct its usual sale of treasury bills via Open Market Operations (OMO). In the last exercise it conducted on Monday, where it offered for sale N30 billion worth of the debt instrument, the apex declared a no sale despite receiving considerable subscriptions from market players. In the absence of the absence of the OMO auction, the secondary market for treasury bills closed bearish on Wednesday. Business Post reports that the average T-bills yields appreciated by 0.18 percent yesterday to finish at 14.24 percent. This

By Dipo Olowookere The Federal Government’s Whistle-blower policy has started yielding fruit as it has so far led to the recovery of $151 million and N8 billion in looted funds, the Minister of Information and Culture, Mr Lai Mohammed, has revealed. In a statement issued in Lagos on Sunday, the Minister said the looted funds, which do not include the $9.2 million in cash allegedly owned by a former Group Managing Director of the NNPC (which was also a dividend of the whistle-blower policy), were recovered from just three sources through whistle-blowers who gave actionable information to the office of

By Adeniyi Ogunfowoke Financial independence means that you will never be broke. Whenever you need money, you can easily make it available. Even if this is not the case, you can take care of yourself and your family without any need to call on friends to lend you money. In a country like Nigeria, this is a bit difficult due to the trending economic downturn and the lack of a stable business environment. Regardless, you have no choice than to be financially independent. Jumia Travel, the leading online travel agency shares tips that will help to be financially independent. Income