Oil Returns to Bullish Zone over Tighter US Supply

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 Aduragbemi Omiyale A new Code of Conduct for Approved Persons of Trading License Holders, otherwise known as stockbrokers, has been introduced by the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Regulation Limited (NGX RegCo). It was disclosed that the ethical guideline was designed to ensure professionals dealing with the trading of shares at NGX Limited follow high standards. Furthermore, it highlights the expected standards and values that Approved Persons must display at all times when conducting their businesses at all times. The idea of the code of conduct for stockbrokers, according to the regulator, is to deepen the market and foster professionalism, integrity,

By Adedapo Adesanya  Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) has secured a $300 million loan from the Export-Import Bank of China (CEXIM) to drive increased trade finance and investment across the African continent, fostering economic growth and development. The infrastructure solutions provider on the continent announced the successful signing of the landmark agreement on the sidelines of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) Annual meetings in Egypt. The 3-year credit facility is a significant development in AFC’s long-standing relationship with CEXIM. The two institutions have collaborated since 2018, with AFC receiving $400 million in bilateral loans from CEXIM to date. According to

By Lansar Aghaji & Co In a bid to invoke transparency, earn the citizen’s trust and fight corruption (in its many forms), virtually all the countries of the world (world bank puts the statistics at over 150 countries) provide a structured medium for ensuring that elected, appointed, recruited or contracted public officials make their assets known to the public (For Nigeria, public officials are expected to do so within 30 days of picking the Asset Declaration Form). Being the norm, whatever information acquired via this declaration is made available to the public for further scrutiny if the official is a

By Adedapo Adesanya The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has issued an amended Determination of Mobile (Voice) International Termination Rate (ITR) for implementation in the Nigerian Telecommunications Industry effective from September 1, 2022. The ITR for voice services paid for terminating international calls on local networks in Nigeria is now set at $0.10, from the old rate of $0.045. In a statement, NCC’s Director of Public Affairs, Mr Reuben Muoka, noted that under the amended determination, the international carrier market has been classified into Mobile Network Operators (MNOs)/International Carriers and Small/Nigerian Transit Carriers/International Data Access (IDA) Operators to ensure a level

By Dipo Olowookere Federal Government has been charged to ensure it drastically reduces the accumulation of domestic debt in order to free the market for better access by the private sector. This advice was given by the Nigerian Senate when it resumed plenary duties yesterday after going for an annual recess last month. The upper chamber of the National Assembly said though there would be need to borrow, government must begin to look at other alternatives to borrowing, as it is beginning to have a serious effect on the fiscal operations of the economy. The Senate, which passed a motion

By Ashemiriogwa Emmanuel The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has said that the main reason why many doctors flee from the country for greener pastures elsewhere is as a result of poor remuneration and welfare. The National Publicity Secretary of the association, Mr Aniekeme Uwah, said this on Monday during the 2021 Correspondents’ Chapel Week, adding that the increasing human capital flight of doctors from the country will potentially affect the health sector. Speaking in Uyo on the theme Post-COVID-19 Economy and the Challenges to Ethical Journalism Ahead of 2023 Elections, Mr Uwah said, “So many of our colleagues in Nigeria

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Nigerian Breweries (NB) Plc has donated a fully furnished school library to Randle Avenue Primary School, in the Surulere Local Government Area of Lagos State. During the commissioning of the project, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the company, Mr Nicolaas Vervelde, explained that the initiative was in line with the company’s commitment to the development of education in Nigeria. The company’s boss, represented by NB’s Corporate Affairs Adviser, Mr Kufre Ekanem, further stated that the project was part of the company’s philosophy of Winning with Nigeria and a demonstration of its commitment to improving the standard of

By Dipo Olowookere A Nigerian digital publisher, Publiseer, has been shortlisted for the Startupbootcamp FastTrack, an event hosted all over the world to meet top-tier early-stage companies to join Startupbootcamp, a global network of industry-focused startup accelerators. The Nigerian firm is one of the 10 start-ups chosen to participate in the programme. Publiseer and nine other start-ups were selected from an overwhelming number of applications to participate in Startupbootcamp FastTrack and Office Hours events taking place in Lagos from April 7 to 8, 2018. Each founder team will give a 3-minute pitch with a 5 minute Q&A, followed by a

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Tier-one Nigerian lender, Zenith Bank Plc, has announced its intention to buy back the $500 million Eurobond it issued to investors in 2017. During the exercise, the five-year senior unsecured benchmark bond listed on the Irish Stock Exchange at a coupon rate of 7.375 percent recorded oversubscription of more than 300 percent. Business Post reports that subscription for the Eurobond due in 2022 issue was $2.1 billion and recorded landmark success on three counts: pricing, subscription level and global appeal, with subscribers from Hong-Kong, China, Singapore, Europe and the United States of America. On Wednesday, the financial

By Adedapo Adesanya  Starting a photography business is a risky but it is a very profitable venture. However, it is very important to understand some of the key things before deciding what you want or how you want the business to be structured. Like any business, the practitioner must have a deep interest for the profession. An inherent interest in the creative process of taking photographs will help in the overall success of the business. In this part of the world, photography is mostly learned through apprenticeship by gaining experience from an established professional to know the rudiments of the