Oil Prices Spike on Fresh Saudi Attacks, AstraZeneca Vaccination

By Adedapo Adesanya The Minister of Power, Mr Adebayo Adelabu, has called for collective efforts to shape the energy sector in Nigeria, noting that no meaningful economic growth can be achieved without it. Mr Adelabu said this at the Nigeria Energy 2023 leadership summit recently held in Lagos, with the theme Unlocking new value with reforms, investments, and technology which saw in attendance industry leaders. The Minister said, “Energy is the lifeblood of any modern economy of which Nigeria is no exception. No meaningful economic growth or industrial development can be achieved without energy. “We can be talking of potential

By Adedapo Adesanya Oil prices moderated in choppy trade on Monday as Russia relaxed its fuel ban amid a widening demand worry. Brent crude futures lost 2 cents during the session to trade at $93.29 per barrel, and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude depreciated by 35 cents to close at $89.68 per barrel. Last week, prices were down after a hawkish Federal Reserve rattled global financial markets and raised concerns that interest rates could stay higher for longer affecting oil demand. This snapped a three-week rally of more than 10 per cent after Saudi Arabia and Russia constrained

By Bliss Okperan Nigeria’s internet speed averages 25 megabits per second (Mbps), according to data from Surf Shark, a cybersecurity company focused on developing humanised privacy and security solutions. The ranking, contained in the 5th annual (Digital Quality of Life Index (DQL), showed that the country dropped two places to 7th from 9th within the last two years. A quick average analysis shows that at an average of 25 Mbps, Nigeria is far from the world’s fastest fixed internet Singapore, which is 300 Mbps and is ahead compared to the slowest fixed internet in the world, Yemen, which is 11

By Aduragbemi Omiyale Mr Tokunbo Akande, the Special Adviser to the Executive Chairman of the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service (LIRS), Mr Ayodele Subair, has waded into the controversies surrounding stamp duty. The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) have been at loggerheads at to which of them should collect the revenue charged on financial transactions in the country. Mr Akande, while commenting on the matter, described stamp duty as ‘a revenue stamp and not a postage stamp.’ While featuring as a guest on The Tax Talk programme on Channels Television recently, he emphasised that

**Says Oil Prices Could Rise to $85 Per Barrel By Dipo Olowookere As investors prepare for 2019, UBS Global Wealth Management said they (investors) will need to weather more volatility in order to capture opportunities in the coming year. According to the Year Ahead report from UBS, the world’s leading wealth manager, global economic growth will decelerate next year to 3.6 percent from 3.8 percent in 2018, and company earnings will grow at a slower rate. However, a 2019 recession still looks unlikely, and the price of many financial assets has already moved to reflect uncertain prospects, it said in

By Edwin Ekene Upon assumption of office in 2015, President Muhammadu Buhari left no one in doubt about his determination to ‘kill corruption’ in Nigeria. Fight against corruption was one of his major campaign promises both in the 2015 and 2019 presidential elections. At a time which impunity, flagrant display of ill-gotten wealth and economic subjugation and oppression was on the verge of disconnecting the country from the league of civilised nations of the world, President Buhari added flesh to one of his campaign promises by appointing Ibrahim Mustapha Magu as the Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes

By Dipo Olowookere The rise in the number of Ponzi scheme operators, especially in the northern part of Nigeria, has been attributed to financial illiteracy. The Kano zonal head of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Mr Mohammed Danladi, said this on Tuesday when he visited the Kano zonal head of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr Sanusi Mohammed. He also said most of the Ponzi scheme operators in the country avoid SEC registration because they know they would be monitored, noting that the visit to the EFCC was to solidify the already existing relationship between both organisations.

By Dipo Olowookere A stockbroking firm, Atlass Portfolios Limited, is looking to take over the industry by storm by offering retail and institutional investors lower brokerage commission. The standard brokerage fee approved by the regulatory agencies is 1.35 per cent, but Atlass Portfolios said it would charge 0.4 per cent for a buy order and 0.60 per cent for a sell order. Business Post reports that before now, the lowest brokerage charge is offered by Morgan Capital, but with this, investors may likely port to Atlass Portfolios, which is a member of Cititrust Group. In a notice on Monday, the

By Modupe Gbadeyanka QNB Group, the largest financial institution in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region, announced its results for the six months ended 30 June 2017, which is the highest in the history of QNB Group. For the first six months of 2017, Net Profit reached $1.8 billion, up by 7 percent compared to last year, demonstrating QNB Group’s success in resilience and maintaining strong growth while controlling costs. Total assets reached $211 billion, up by 11 percent from June 2016, the highest ever achieved by the Group. This was driven by a growth rate of 11 percent

By Adedapo Adesanya It was a negative outcome for unlisted securities trading on the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange on Wednesday. It was the first trading session of the week after a two-day absence due to the public holiday declared by the federal government to allow Muslims celebrate the end of Ramadan. At the midweek session, the equity market size of the bourse fell by 1.31 percent or N6.65 billion to N499.11 billion from N505.76 billion it quoted last Friday. Also contracting was the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI), which lost by 1.31 percent or 9.05 points to end the

By Dipo Olowookere Access Bank Plc is planning to hit the international debt capital market next week to raise some funds from investors. The lender, which currently has a $400 million Eurobond due in 2021 with a coupon of 9.25 per cent, wants to issue another dollar-denominated bond. In a notice to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited on Thursday, the lender said it has already given a marching order to some firms to make arrangements for the 5-year Eurobond sale. Those involved in the transaction are Absa, Barclays, JP Morgan and Standard Chartered Bank as joint bookrunners, while Chapel Hill

By Adedapo Adesanya Nigeria’s demand for Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), otherwise known as petrol, from Europe fell by almost 30 per cent as a result of the scrapping of fuel subsidy by President Bola Tinubu. This is according to data provided by Kpler, a data and analytics firm that tracks energy information. President Bola Tinubu, in his inauguration speech on May 29, 2023, announced an end to fuel subsidy, which gulped N4.3 trillion alone in 2022. The removal of the fuel subsidy to the Nigerian Midstream Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has led to a 35 per cent drop in