Again, Nigeria’s Manufacturing PMI Drops in February

By Adedapo Adesanya The federal government has exempted imported Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) and its equipment from the payment of customs duty and value-added tax (VAT), a move expected to result in a drop in the cost of cooking gas in the country and bring much-needed succour to Nigerians. This was disclosed by the Minister of Finance, Mr Wale Edun, in a letter (dated November 28, 2023) to the Special Adviser to the President on Energy; the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS); and the Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS). Recall that in 2019, the federal

By Precious Olisa The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) and the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) have expressed their disappointment over the increasing exit of multinationals from the Nigerian market. The two organisations reacted to the planned exit of Procter & Gamble (P&G) from the country over economic headwinds. P&G announced its intention to close down its manufacturing operations in Nigeria and adopt an import-only business model due to the foreign exchange (FX) crisis in the country. This is coming some weeks after GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), Sanofi, Unilever Nigeria, Equinor and others have also indicated their interest in quitting

By Aduragbemi Omiyale One of the players in the personal healthcare and consumer goods sectors, PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc, has published a list of its shareholders with unclaimed dividends. Unclaimed dividends are cash rewards given to investors, mainly from the profits from the company’s operations, but are yet to be collected by the beneficiaries. This has been a major source of sleepless nights for the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which is working to bring down the number of unclaimed dividends. It has been reported that the value of unclaimed dividends in the nation’s stock market is over N185 billion.

By Adedapo Adesanya Some Nigerians have expressed anger over the upward review in the foreign exchange (FX) rate, a move that could see imported goods and by extension, domestic products record surge in prices at a time when the country is battling a high cost of living. The federal government, through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), has hiked the duties payable on imported goods at Nigerian ports. Business Post gathered that the upward review of prices showed the US Dollar equivalent had been put at N951.941/$1 while for the Euro, the rate was pegged at N1,030.762/€1 and the Pound

By Modupe Gbadeyanka A call for an increased stakeholders’ collaboration towards restoring biodiversity and preserving the environment has been made by the Food and Beverage Recycling Alliance (FBRA). The group, while commemorating the World Environmental Day 2020, reiterated the crucial role of recycling in preserving the environment while urging consumers to imbibe a culture of proper waste disposal. The World Environmental Day is an annual event designed to engage people, communities and governments to raise global awareness and action for the protection of the environment. This year’s event themed Celebrate Biodiversity is expected to galvanize global efforts and initiatives that

By Investors Hub European stocks have turned mixed on Thursday as concerns over the recent strength of the euro have partly overshadowed gains in the banking and commodity-related sectors. While the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.2 percent, the German DAX Index is down by 0.5 percent and the French CAC 40 Index is down by 0.9 percent. Deutsche Bank shares have risen after a U.S. federal judge dismissed a lawsuit accusing the bank of concealing major deficiencies in its anti-money laundering controls. Commerzbank, BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole and Barclays have also climbed as all big U.S. banks

By Kester Kenn Klomegah In separate early April discussions with South African and Ethiopian leaders, Russian President Vladimir Putin pledges Russia’s support in collaborating with Africa fight coronavirus that is currently spreading among the population across the continent. With the Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, the Kremlin press reported that “while discussing the situation caused by the spread of the coronavirus, both parties stressed the importance of invigorating efforts of the entire international community, including the IMF and the World Bank, to combat the infection. They have also considered some topical aspects of developing bilateral relations.” South African President Cyril

By Dipo Olowookere The Kwara State Government says it is not owing any special athletes 15 months salaries as claimed by protesters on Wednesday in Ilorin, the state capital. According to the State’s Director of Sports, Mallam Tunde Kazeem, civil servants working with the Sports Council received their salaries on Tuesday, September 6. The Director said that the council only placed some athletes on a monthly stipend because they represent the State and they do not have jobs. According to him, the council also pays some athletes stipends after its workers are paid. Mr Kazeem explained further that the athletes

By Adedapo Adesanya In line with its commitment to creating innovative and future-ready homes, Grohe has drawn from demographic research to re-design one of its bestseller products – the GROHE Eurosmart. The forward-thinking bathroom design created with extra protection was designed to serve the needs of consumers at different stages of life. The company in a statement announcing the product said, “Undoubtedly our society is changing – not only is the population constantly growing, but we are also getting increasingly older. Demographic change is challenging our entire society and forcing us to rethink – away from the previous anti-ageing mindset

By Adedapo Adesanya The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has extended a hand of partnership to the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) to effectively drive the petroleum sector with digital technology in research and innovation. This was disclosed when the NITDA received the Research, Technology and Innovation (RTI) division of the NNPC at the National Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics. The team, led by the Chief Innovation Officer of NNPC, Mrs Ugonna Betty Amaechi, maintained that they were at the centre to seek NITDA’s assistance in reviewing some of its strategy, goals, priorities and progress, as well as

By Adedapo Adesanya The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has disclosed that 29 per cent of Nigerian children do not have access to clean water. In a statement marking World Water Day, UNICEF also said more than 1.42 billion people, including 450 million children, are living in areas of high or extremely high water vulnerability in the world. Speaking on the issue as relating to Africa’s most populous nation, the UNICEF Representative in Nigeria, Mr Peter Hawkins, stated, “The world’s water crisis is not coming – it is here, and children are its biggest victim. ‘When wells dry up, children

By Dipo Olowookere A total of N15.8 billion was realized as profit in the first three months of this year compared with the N14.8 billion netted in the same period of last year, the financial statements of FBN Holdings have revealed. This represents a 6.8 percent growth in the PAT posted by the financial institution in the period under consideration, Business Post reports. Also, the company declared a profit before tax of N19.3 billion in Q1 2019, higher than N18.8 billion in Q1 2018. The results indicated that the earnings per share of FBN Holdings, the parent company of the