Oil Prices Gain 5% After Omicron Induced Crash

By Adedapo Adesanya The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange recorded a 0.18 per cent gain to open the week in positive territory on Monday, December 4, with the unlisted security index rising by 1.59 points to end the day at 862.40 points compared with last Friday’s closing value of 860.81 points. The improvement recorded by the bourse yesterday raised the value of the unlisted stock exchange by N2.5 billion to close at N1.169 trillion, in contrast to the preceding session’s N1.166 trillion. The gain posted by the bourse was driven by the N13.70 added to the share price of 11

By Dipo Olowookere Profit-taking activities brought back the bears to the floor of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited on Monday as investors rebalanced their portfolios. It was observed that traders at Customs Street booked profits in shares mostly in the industrial goods sectors like BUA Cement and Lafarge Africa. This resultantly brought down the local stock market by 0.66 per cent at the close of transactions, with the industrial goods space losing 4.21 per cent, the insurance counter declining by 0.28 per cent, and the energy sector falling by 0.01 per cent. However, the consumer goods index improved yesterday by

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Taxpayers, including organisations and individuals, who are yet to pay their outstanding taxes, will not pay penalties and interests if they make the payments on or before December 31, 2023. This tax default forgiveness was given by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), which explained that it created this window in “recognition of the challenges that many taxpayers have faced in settling their outstanding tax liabilities.” However, it stressed that if the full principal payment is not done before the deadline, defaulters would be forced to pay the outstanding tax liabilities. The Chairman of the FIRS, Mr

By Adedapo Adesanya Oil fell on Monday as traders approached the market with caution over plans by the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) to cut production in the first quarter of 2024. Brent crude futures lost 85 cents or 1.08 per cent to finish at $78.03 a barrel while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures depreciated by $1.03 or 1.39 per cent to sell at $73.04 per barrel. OPEC+ announced voluntary production cuts at its meeting last week and this has raised doubts about whether or not producers would fully implement them. Investors

By Dipo Olowookere Treasury bills worth N133.97 billion would be offered to investors at the primary market on Wednesday, October 2, 2019 by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). Business Post reports that the stop rates are anticipated to marginally go up during the exercise as the apex bank plans to retain foreign portfolio investors in the market through attractive rates. The bank would be rolling over the debt instruments in three maturities; 91-day, 182-day and 364-day bills, with N10.00 billion, N17.60 billion and N106.37 billion offered for the respective tenors. Last week, the CBN sold T-bills valued at N302.42

By Investors Hub Asian stocks advanced on Tuesday as investors remained optimistic about the outlook for Republican tax reform and the World Bank raised its forecast for China’s growth in 2017, citing rising household incomes and a recovery in global trade. The U.S. House of Representatives is scheduled to vote on the tax bill later in the day, while a vote in the Senate is expected to follow shortly on the heels. China’s Shanghai Composite index jumped 28.62 points or 0.88 percent to 3,296.54, reflecting gains in other regional markets and overnight gains on Wall Street. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng

By Adedapo Adesanya The United Kingdom on Wednesday became the first Western country to approve a COVID-19 vaccine for general use. It announced a rollout of Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccines from next week in a major advance for humanity’s fightback against the coronavirus that started less than a year ago in Wuhan, China. The UK’s independent medicines regulator, Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), gave its green light in double-quick time but insisted safety had come first. Speaking on this, the agency’s chief executive, Ms June Raine, said, “Everybody can be confident that no corners whatsoever have been cut. The public

By Dipo Olowookere Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa, who is the Chairman of the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal, has withdrawn from the tribunal. Justice Bulkachuwa announced her decision to recuse herself from the tribunal on Wednesday after an application filed by the Peoples Democratic Party and its candidate in the 2019 presidential election, Mr Atiku Abubakar, was thrown out today by Justice Peter Ige. The opposition party and its flag bearer at the poll had claimed Justice Bulkachuwa would not be fair in her judgement while being head of the election tribunal because of her ties with the ruling party, the All

By Aduragbemi Omiyale The spread of COVID-19 can be controlled if the services of e-commerce platforms are embraced by the citizens, the CEO of Jumia Nigeria, Mr Massiliano Spalazzi, has submitted. Nigeria and other nations of the world are battling to tame the second wave of the virus. During the first wave, the global economy was shut down and platforms like Jumia were the saving grace for shoppers. But since authorities eased the lockdown, many people have found it difficult to adhere strictly to the COVID-19 protocols put in place to defeat the contagion. At various public places and offices,

By Comrade Omaga Daniel For the purpose of clarity, I would like to say that I am not a lazy youth as opined by Baba Buhari. I am a trained Biochemist and Environmentalist. I work daily for my country, I pay my tax promptly and I render selfless service to humanity in the little ways I can. I am a social activist, a youth leader and community influencer who have imparted and still imparting positively on my generation. In the same vein, many other Nigerian youths are immensely contributing their quota to national development in one ramification or the other.

By Modupe Gbadeyanka The winner of the Airtel TV Super Skit-Makers competition, Mr Qudus Shokunbi, has been showered with N1 million and a scholarship to Del-York Creative Academy, a top film school in Lagos. Mr Shokunbi claimed the star prize of the contest, which was put in place to recognise and reward the country’s outstanding talent in the emerging online skits genre. The winner expressed his gratitude to Airtel TV for boosting the art form. “I am happy that Airtel TV organized this competition and offered this large prize. Their support will go a long way to encourage more youths