Nigeria’s Economy Shrinks By 2.24% In Q3

By Adedapo Adesanya The Nigerian Naira weakened to a new low on the American Dollar at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) on Friday, December 8, amid speculations that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has again devalued the local currency. In the previous trading session, there were reports that the exchange rate for clearing cargoes has been raised to N952/$1, sparking rumours that domestic currency would hit N1,000/$1 in the spot market. On the last trading session of the week, the Naira lost N255.98 or 30.4 per cent of its value on the greenback to trade at N1,099.05/$1

By Adedapo Adesanya The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited to disclose Nigeria’s daily oil production and exports as well as the total amounts of revenue generated from oil since the removal of subsidy on petrol in mid-2023. In a letter dated December 9, 2023, the group asked the chief executive of the NNPC, Mr Mele Kyari, “to disclose how much of the revenues generated from oil have been remitted to the public treasury since the removal of subsidy on petrol.” He was also requested “to disclose details of payment of

By Dipo Olowookere The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said Nigeria’s revenue–to-gross domestic product (GDP) ratio of about 9 per cent was too low to trigger the economic growth projected by President Bola Tinubu in his Renewed Hope Agenda. Addressing journalists at its last press briefing for 2023 on Thursday, the global lender said the administration of Mr Tinubu must boost the government’s revenue to have funds to achieve his goals. On May 29, 2023, Mr Tinubu took over from Mr Muhammadu Buhari, promising to jump-start the economy and work tirelessly to address food security, end hunger, eradicate poverty, create

By Adedapo Adesanya The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has cautioned Nigerians to be wary of fake Naira notes currently in circulation, vowing to prosecute those engaged in the illicit acts. The apex bank in a release signed by Mrs Hakama Sidi Ali, the acting Director of Corporate Communications, said the counterfeit notes have been spread by some individuals for transactions in food markets and other places where commerce takes place across the country, noting that this is a punishable offence. “The attention of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been drawn to the circulation of counterfeit banknotes, especially

By Adedapo Adesanya After closing the previous session in the positive region, the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange ended Thursday’s trading day flat, with the key barometers remaining at their previous levels. At the midweek, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc had helped the market to close green, but the stock or any other could not further lift the market capitalisation beyond N503.55 billion it closed the previous day or help the NASD Unlisted Securities Index (NSI) go past the 700.39 points it printed on Wednesday. At the bourse yesterday, the volume of shares transacted appreciated by 444 percent or 217,837 units

By Adedapo Adesanya The federal government has expressed its readiness to partner with the Republic of Cuba in the development of biotechnology for pharmaceutical production. This was disclosed by the Minister of Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI), Mr Ogbonnaya Onu, when he received Mrs Clara Escadel, the Cuban Ambassador to Nigeria on a courtesy call in Abuja. The Minister said the development of biotechnology for pharmaceuticals would be facilitated and accelerated due to Nigeria’s youthful population. Mr Onu said that Nigerian youths, at home and abroad, had reached the peak of their careers in various technological endeavours. He added that

By Aduragbemi Omiyale Investors have been advised to begin to consider investors in equities that are compliant with Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG). The Divisional Head of Capital Markets at Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited, Mr Jude Chiemeka, stressed that there is a significant correlation between ESG disclosures and corporate performance. According to him, investing in ESG stocks give investors the opportunity to receive transparent and high-quality disclosures, which are critical in making sound investment decisions. “Companies on the exchange with strong ESG compliance often gain access to more capital, attract a broader investor base, and can even raise capital from

By Modupe Gbadeyanka The Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) under the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning have been charged to harness their energies towards attaining fiscal buffers and stimulating macroeconomic stability. This charge was given by the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, at the ministerial alignment meeting held in Abuja. She said it was crucial for them to remain unwavering and relentless in the pursuit of earmarked 40 deliverables at the 2019 presidential retreat/ministerial induction. According to her, it is critical to take stock of progress and align with the updated performance

By Modupe Gbadeyanka The Bankers’ Committee has promised to embark on a continuous effort to promote financial literacy among youths in Nigeria. This decision was reached at the committee’s meeting held in Lagos on Wednesday. According to the Group Managing Director of Skye Bank Plc, Mr Tokunbo Abiru, the committee unanimously agreed that the banking industry should act in unity to ensure that financial education is promoted in schools across the six geopolitical zones. “Part of what we discussed was the need to continuously improve on financial literacy. And one of the resolutions is for the entire industry to act

By Modupe Gbadeyanka For the second day in a row, Guinness and Nigerian Breweries have dragged the equity market in Nigeria to another poor session. On Tuesday, fall in the price of the two blue chip stocks crashed the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) by 0.17 percent. Today, the market pointed southward by 0.58 percent, courtesy Guinness and Nigerian Breweries Plc and 17 other equities, which depreciated. Guinness led the gainers’ log on Wednesday after dropping N3.24k to close at N62.11k per share, while Nigerian Breweries lost N2.38k to end at N126.82k per share. Also, Cadbury slumped by 75k to finish

By Modupe Gbadeyanka The research arm of Lagos-based financial institution, FSDH Merchant Bank, has said it expects inflation rate for the month of February 2019 to moderate to 11.31 percent from 11.37 percent recorded a month earlier. In its Inflation Watch report, FSDH Research said the drop in inflation will defy electioneering spending, which was earlier predicted to contribute to a rise in the head inflation. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) will release the inflation figure for the month of February on Friday, March 15, 2019, well ahead of the second Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting of this year

By Aduragbemi Omiyale Broadband access projects worth N16.7 billion aimed to accelerate the Nigeria digital economy efforts of the federal government are expected to be enjoyed by several organisations in the country. The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Mr Isa Pantami, speaking at an event in Abuja recently, stated that those to benefit from the projects include Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), 18 universities, and six polytechnics from each of the six geopolitical zones in the country. The Minister was at the unveiling of the projects being driven by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) at Transcorp Hilton. He