Oando Sustains Positive Moment with N4b Profit in Q1 2018

By Adedapo Adesanya Equinor and Chappal Energies have entered into an agreement for the sale of Equinor Nigeria Energy Company (ENEC), which holds a 53.85 per cent ownership in oil and gas lease OML 128, including the unitized 20.21 per cent stake in the Agbami oil field, operated by Chevron. Speaking on the deal, Equinor’s senior vice president for Africa Operations, Ms Nina Koch, said Nigeria has been an important part of Equinor’s international portfolio over the past 30 years, noting that, “This transaction realizes value and is in line with Equinor’s strategy to optimize its international oil and gas

By Adedapo Adesanya The prices of oil benchmarks jumped by 2 per cent on Tuesday on the fresh possibility that the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) will extend or deepen supply cuts. Data showed that Brent crude futures gained $1.70 or 2.1 per cent to close at $81.68 a barrel and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude increased by $1.55 or 2.1 per cent to $76.41 per barrel after a drop in Kazakh oil output and a weaker US Dollar. OPEC+ is due to hold an online ministerial meeting on Thursday to discuss 2024

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 Modupe Gbadeyanka A bench warrant for the arrest of the second defendant in the case involving the former Director-General of the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC), Mr Mounir Gwarzo, has been issued by Federal High Court sitting in Abuja. The second suspect in the matter, Ms Jamila Ahmad Muhammed, a Principal Manager with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), is to be apprehended by security operatives for failure to appear in court over allegations of corruption. Mr Gwarzo is being prosecuted by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) over their complicity in N12.8 million contract

By Dipo Olowookere The collapsed portion of the Makurdi–Lafia–Abuja road destroyed by the recent heavy rain in Yelwata settlement in Guma Local Government Area of Benue State has been reinstated by the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA). The Federal highway was almost cut into two due to heavy rain which caused a washout of an entire lane at Ch37 + 500 along Lafia – Makurdi Road. FERMA was alerted about the road situation by the Nasarawa State Commissioner for Works, Engr. Wada Yahaya Mohammed. The information prompted the Agency to mobilize its engineers to site to immediately assess the extent

By Dipo Olowookere Nigeria’s stock market swayed southwards on Tuesday following mild profit-taking and cautious trading by investors, who were waiting for the outcome of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). The apex bank had commenced the important gathering, the fourth this year, on Monday and the Governor of the CBN, Mr Godwin Emefiele, was expected to announce the decision of the team. Some analysts had predicted that the benchmark interest rate would be retained at 11.5 per cent, while others projected that it would be tampered with, especially because of the decline

By Dipo Olowookere The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced the retention of the benchmark interest rate at 13.50 percent. This was made known on Tuesday by Governor of the CBN, Mr Godwin Emefiele, who chairs the committee. While addressing the media on outcome of the two-day meeting held in Abuja, the CBN chief said members agreed to keep that Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) at the previous level of 13.50 percent due to present key economic indicators. He said at the end of deliberations, members said there should be asymmetric corridor of +200/-500

By Modupe Gbadeyanka The Executive Chairman of the Lagos State Universal Basic Education Board, Dr Ganiyu Oluremi Sopeyin, on Tuesday disclosed that no fewer than 1,110 public primary schools teachers spread across the 20 Local Government Education Authorities in the State would be trained in the Jolly Phonics method of teaching. Speaking during the Flag off of the training exercise at the Lagos State Universal Basic Education Board Maryland Multipurpose Hall, Dr Sopeyin affirmed that the training exercise, which is in collaboration with the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), was designed primarily to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of public

By Adedapo Adesanya Oil prices edged lower on Thursday, hovering around two-month lows as the level of a proposed Group of Seven (G7) nations cap on the price of Russian oil raised doubts. Brent crude futures were down 28 cents or 0.3 per cent to $85.13 a barrel, while the United States West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures fell by 5 cents or 0.1 per cent to $77.89 per barrel. The G7 group of nations is looking at a cap on Russian seaborne oil at $65-$70 a barrel, a European official said, though European Union governments have yet to agree

By Dipo Olowookere Federal Government has collaborated with the Federal College of Agriculture, Akure (FECA) to train over 500 unemployed graduates across 16 states of the country to serve as mentors for future generation of farmers. Provost of the College, Dr Samson Odedina, who noted that they are the future of agriculture in the country, disclosed this recently at the opening ceremony of the five-day vocational training in modern agriculture on the campus. According to him, “This present training is being held in tandem with our mandate to support government interest and investment in agriculture, which centres on job creation

By Cowry Asset In the just concluded week, FGN bonds traded at the over-the-counter (OTC) segment appreciated in value for most maturities tracked on renewed buy pressure in line with our expectations: the 20-year, 10% FGN JULY 2030 debt, the 7-year, 16.00% FGN JUN 2019 debt and the 5-year, 14.50% FGN JUL 2021 debt appreciated by N0.01, N0.10 and N0.01 respectively; their corresponding yields declined to 14.18% (from 14.19%), 12.64% (from 12.83%) and 13.68% (from 13.69%) respectively; however the 10-year, 16.39% FGN JAN 2022 debt decreased in value by N0.69 and its corresponding yield rose to 13.77% (from 13.55%). Meanwhile,