All business, markets and economics news
The value of the naira continued to depreciate as the currency fell to a four-week low at the interbank market selling for 157.24 to the dollar as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) cut back volume at yesterday’s auction amidst rising demand. The ...
The Renewable Energy Global Status report showed that by the end of 2011, total renewable power capacity worldwide exceeded 1,360 Giga Watt (GW), up to 8 per cent over what it was in 2010. The report added that renewable energy supply constituted more ...
Nigerian interbank lending rates rose by about 100 basis points this week, to an average of 12.5 per cent, as dollar sales by the state-owned energy firm NNPC and treasury bills sapped naira liquidity. The NNPC sells the bulk of dollars traded on the i...
When the Bankers’ Committee last year November announced the withdrawal of the N100 Automated Teller Machine (ATM) charge there was widespread jubilation over what many said was the removal of a big burden from the shoulders of bank customers. Bu...
Recent development at the Nigerian Stock Exchange suggests that investors are currently responding to experts’ advice that in the event of a meltdown in the prices of shares, investors need to invest in the market despite recurrent losses in rece...
Key operators in the Nigerian capital market have agreed that the market making process introduced in the stock market recently has boosted liquidity in trading activities. The Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS) said there is still lots of gap i...
The federal government has been urged to give the necessary support to the microfinance banks in the country with a view to alleviating poverty among the people, especially the rural dwellers. The Mananging Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Mains...
The Managing Director of Bank of Industry (BOI), Ms Evelyn Oputu, has said that there was need for adequate funding for gender sensitive programmes as women empowerment was very vital for any meaningful economi...
Small and Medium Entrepreneurs (SME’s) have sought the intervention of government to help increase their capacity so that the sector could connect resourcefully in export of their products to heighten governments non-oil sector export drive. At t...
The electricity workers’ union under the aegis of National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) and Senior Staff Association of Electricity and Allied Companies (SSAEAC) have said that they would not accept the takeover of any PHCN facility by t...
The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) and the appointed auditors for the proposed audit of all revenues and disbursements of allocated funds to entities involved in the extractive industries are billed to meet this wee...
Transactions on Nigerian Stock Exchange on Wednesday bowed to profit-taking with the market capitalisation dropping by N43 billion. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the market capitalisation, which opened at N9.297 trillion depreciated by 0.46 per cent to close at N9.254 trillion.
The All-Share Index lost 132.68 points, which represented 0.46 per cent, to close at 28,956.83 against the 29,089.51 posted on Tuesday. Nigerian Breweries led the price losers' chart with N4.85 to close at N145.65 per share. It was trailed by Presco with a loss of N1.90 to close at N20.50, while National Salt lost 44k to close at N8.30 per share.
Stanbic dropped 33k to close at N11.21, while FBNH dipped by 26k to close at N17.25 per share. Conversely, NewGold, for the second consecutive day, led the gainers' chart, appreciating by N13 to close at N2,535 per unit.
Nestle came second with N3.50 to close at N710 per share, while Okomu Oil gained N2.15 to close at N49 per share. Lafarge Wapco gained N1.90 to close at N55.90 and was followed by Ashaka Cement with N1.71 to close at N20.69 per share.
The financial services sector was investors' delight, accounting for 335.08 million shares worth N2.72 billion traded in 3,396 deals. UBA drove activity in the sector with 147.58 million shares valued at N832.86 million traded in 147.58 deals.
In all, investors exchanged 455.81 million shares worth N4.06 billion in 6,980 deals. This is against the 529.79 million shares valued at N3.71 billion traded in 6,858 deals on Tuesday. (NAN)
The Central Bank of Nigeria (NAN) sold foreign exchange worth 43.2 million dollars (N66.96 billion) at its bi-weekly Wholesale Dutch Auction System (WDAS) on Wednesday. This information was contained in the apex bank’s Website on Wednesday after the auction.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the WDAS sale on Wednesday was smaller than the one conducted on Monday at which 150 million dollars was sold.
A dealer, who preferred anonymity, said that the action of the apex bank was to control foreign exchange in the system. "The small amount of forex sold this time around is because it is the second auction in the year.
``Again, most Nigerians abroad came in with foreign currencies during the Yuletide and that means that there is still much foreign currencies around,`` he said. The official exchange rate remained at N155.79 to the dollar at Wednesday's auction.
The dollar has remained at N155.79 to the dollar since the Dec. 19, 2012. A total of three banks participated at Wednesday’s auction against 15 banks that participated at Monday’s auction. (NAN)
The World Bank has expressed satisfaction with the level of implementation of the 180 million dollars Science and Technology Education, Post-Basic (STEP-B) projects in selected federal institutions in Nigeria.
The World Bank Senior Education Specialist in Nigeria Dr Tunde Adekola, expressed the feeling in Abuja on Tuesday at a meeting of the National Education Sector Steering Committee on Donors' Assisted States Education Projects.
Adekola said that the bank was pleased with the level of implementation of projects since it started in 2007. He said for a long time, Nigeria went back and forth rating unsatisfactory and moderately satisfactory.
``World Bank is currently spending N55 billion on education projects in 10 states and we are planning to expand the intervention this year.
``We are basically spending 95 million dollars in the Lagos Eko project while 90 million dollars is for Lagos, five million dollars will be for federal.
``We are also spending 150 million dollars on Programmatic Result Learning project in Bauchi, Anambra, Ekiti and Edo and 100 million dollars on Global Partnership on Education in Kano, Jigawa, Katsina, Kaduna and Sokoto, ‘’he said.
Adekola said by June the bank would introduce a policy note on basic education and skills acquisition in Nigeria, where more than 100,000 households had been interviewed.
The Minister of Education, Prof. Ruqayyatu Rufa'I, ,on her part, appealed to states to address the challenges of the education sector.
Rufa’I said that challenges that could hamper progress had been identified in the sector, including developing sectoral plans and conducting annual school census.
Others are improving literacy, building and equipping technical schools and access to matching grants. She thanked the World Bank for the continuous support of the Nigerian education sector.
The minister said that the federal component of the Lagos Eko project had also helped in the drive to enhance quality training of education personnel, including teachers.
``I expect the project to complete the work started on supporting the ministry in the provision of some infrastructure for its Education Management Information system,'' she said.
Also, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education, Dr MacJohn Nwaobiala, said that the World Bank was desirous of improving the quality and access of the Nigeria education.
``We believe that when we work in synergy and collaboration, development partners will always identify areas for which they can provide support to Nigeria.
``I want to say that the support we get from our development partners must be efficiently managed and utilised. ``We must review the World Bank strategy from time to time and adopt those that are viable, ‘’he said.
The Akwa Ibom House of Assembly on Tuesday passed the 2013 Appropriation bill of N470.08 billion. The budget comprised recurrent expenditure of N118. 79 billion and capital expenditure of N351.28 billion. Gov. Godswill Akpabio had on Nov. 20, 201...