OPEC+ Meets June 4 Amid Conflicting Messages

By Aduragbemi Omiyale The management of BUA Cement Plc has announced a reduction in the prices of its cement from its factory without the transportation costs to N3,500 per bag (50kg). The cement maker confirmed this development in a statement issued on Sunday, noting that it was part of efforts to make sure customers get the products at cheaper prices. In the statement, BUA Cement disclosed that the slash in cement prices is from Monday, October 2, 2023, urging its distributors not to fleet the end users. The firm said, “All pending, undelivered orders which had been paid for at

By Adedapo Adesanya The Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) has shared a total of N1.1 trillion from the revenue generated by the nation in August 2023 for September to enable the three tiers of government; the federal government, states, and local government councils, to have funds to pay salaries and others. The allocation of the funds was confirmed by the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation on Friday following FAAC’s September 2023 meeting. According to a statement by the OAGF’s Director of Press and Public Relations, Mr Bawa Mokwa, there was “N1100.101 billion (N1.1 trillion) total distributable revenue.”

By Adedapo Adesanya The Naira appreciated against the US Dollar in the Investors and Exporters (I&E), the Peer-to-Peer (P2P), and the black market arms of the foreign exchange (forex) market on Friday, September 29, as a turbulent third quarter ended. In the official segment, the local currency improved its value against the greenback by 2.6 per cent or N20.04 to close at N755.27/$1, in contrast to the preceding day’s N775.31/$1 amid a drop in the supply of FX into the system by 11.6 per cent or $16.73 million to $127.82 million from the $144.55 million published on Thursday. In the

By Dipo Olowookere In recognition of its compliance with regulatory standards and best practices, the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) has finally accredited the Ecobank Nigeria Academy located in Lagos. A team of the institute led by its Registrar, Mr Oluseye David Awojobi, visited the academy to inspect the facilities and level of compliance to standards. At the end of the visit, he commended the bank for meeting the provisions and requirements of the competency framework for the Nigerian banking industry as mandated by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) through CIBN. Managing Director of Ecobank Nigeria, Mr

By Modupe Gbadeyanka This week, President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria was in Ghana to celebrate the nation’s 61th Independence from their colonial master, Britain. During the event, President Buhari offered Nigeria’s assistance in cooperating with Ghana to tackle “endemic corruption” in the West African neighbour. The speech by the Nigerian leader generated different reactions from Nigerians and Ghanaians. Some wondered how Mr Buhari, who has members of his government accused of corruption, is offering to fight corruption in Ghana. Last month, the global anti-corruption watchdog, Transparency International (TI), ranked Nigeria low in its 2017 Corruption Perception Index (CPI). The agency

By Adedapo Adesanya The House of Representatives has approved President Muhammadu Buhari’s request to borrow foreign loans to the tune of $22.798 billion. According to the government, the loan is part of the 2016–2018 Federal Government External Borrowing (Rolling) Plan laid before the House on March 5, 2020, before the President’s fresh loan request of $5.5 billion on May 28, 2020. The Senate had approved the loan on March 6, but the lower chamber of the National Assembly suspended its consideration of the request indefinitely. Almost two months later, Speaker of the House, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila, at Tuesday’s plenary, explained

The need for a robust and effective Pan African Quality Policy to drive the attainment of Africa’s development goals, which are closely aligned with the sustainable development goals (SDGs) of the United Nations, has been emphasised by Nigeria. Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr Edet Sunday Akpan, made this call on behalf of the country while presenting a keynote address at the opening of a two-day consultative workshop for developing a Pan-African Quality Policy held recently at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja. He noted that the need to develop a Pan-African Quality Policy was

By Dipo Olowookere Over the weekend, the board of Cement Company of Northern Nigeria (CCNN) Plc released the 2018 earnings report of the cement maker. However, the performance during the year was not too impressive, though the revenue generated improved by 61.94 percent to N31.7 billion from N19.6 billion. The gross profit also appreciated by 83.40 percent to N14.2 billion from N7.8 billion, while the finance income rose to N137.6 million from N108.2 million a year earlier. However, cost of sales skyrocketed to N17.5 billion from N11.8 billion, while the administrative expenses shot up to N5 billion from N2.5 billion,

By Adedapo Adesanya As part of efforts to support 100,000 Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in Nigeria, the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD) and the Ecobank Group have launched the MSME Academy to provides easy access to practical training and resources on financing opportunities in various countries. The academy will also teach MSMEs how to build a digital presence for businesses and how to adapt business operations in the era of the COVID-19 pandemic. Touted as a Pan-African initiative, MSME Academy offers free access to market intelligence, a host of mentors with a diverse experience while assisting with access to

By Adedapo Adesanya At the end of the trading day for the week, Friday, July 19, the Naira appreciated marginally against the US Dollar at the Investors and Exporters (I&E) window of the foreign exchange market. The local currency slightly gained 0.04 percent or 16 Kobo, closing at N361.46 against the Dollar in contrast to the previous day’s N361.62/$. A look at the day’s market turnover at the segment showed that the total volume of transactions increased by 39 percent to $231.97 million from the previous trading day’s $167.12 million. Meanwhile, on the parallel market, the Naira/USD saw no changes

By Adeniyi Ogunfowoke With more hotels catering for the corporate travellers, the things you look out for in hotels for your business trip widen. But when you’re searching for your next trip, do you know what you’re looking for in these hotels? Jumia Travel, the leading online travel agency, offers some suggestions on what you should look out for in a hotel to accommodate your needs while on business. In-room and on-site facilities Usually, many hotel rooms offer a working area and you must remember that you will be working in your accommodation. It’s important to consider all of the