West Africa’s crude oil loadings for Asia are set to fall to a five-month low in April, dragged down by a backlog of cargoes outside China and strong Brent prices that hindered new bookings, a Reuters survey of shipping fixtures and traders showed on Friday. Loadings for China, the key consumer of Angolan oil, were […]
Business
Nigeria awards two of three gas pipeline deals
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) said on Friday it had awarded two of three gas pipeline contracts which in total will be worth more than $2.8 billion. One contract for a roughly 200 km (124.27 miles) stretch of the 614 km Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano pipeline and stations was awarded to Oando PLC and OilServe, the state […]
Nigeria’s FCMB sees flat loan growth, eyes UK retail licence -CEO
Nigerian mid-tier lender FCMB expects loan growth to be flat this year after it rose 5.4 percent last year as oil companies pay down debt, its chief executive said on Friday. Ladi Balogun said the group was seeking a retail banking licence for its British-based unit, which offers wholesale banking to boost its balance sheet. […]
Multiple check-points an impediment to trade–ECOWAS
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Taskforce on Trade Liberalisation Scheme says multiple check-points is one of the impediments to trade integration along the Nigerian-Benin corridor. The Executive Secretary, Mr Justin Bayill of ECOWAS made this known in a statement on Thursday in Lagos. Bayil said that persistence collection of illegal fees at […]
AFRICA-FX: Kenyan shilling, Zambia’s kwacha to firm, Nigeria’s naira to hold steady
Kenya’s shilling and the Zambian kwacha are expected to firm on the back of increased demand for local currency, while the Nigerian naira and Ghana’s cedi are set to hold steady. NIGERIA The naira is likely to remain stable, a day after the central bank maintained its tight policy on interest rates to support currency, […]
Nigeria: Stanbic IBTC Bank PMI hits record high in March
–Headline PMI accelerates to 58.8 in March, from 56.0 -Inflows of new orders grow at record pace -Unprecedented job creation as firms looks to increase output capacity Private sector business conditions in Nigeria improved at an unparalleled rate in March, led by record growth in new orders, employment and stocks of purchases. Panel respondents frequently […]
NSEASI Extends Losing Streak; Dips Further by -0.26%
Equities market closed today on a negative note, as NSEASI depreciated by -0.26% to close at 40,749.86 basis points as against -1.56% depreciation recorded previously. Its Year-to-Date (YTD) returns currently stands at +6.55%. Market breadth closed negative as LASACO led 18 Gainers as against 26 Losers topped by DANGFLOUR at the end of today’s session- […]
OPEC March oil output sinks to 11-month low – Report
OPEC oil output fell in March to an 11-month low due to declining Angolan exports, Libyan outages and a further slide in Venezuelan output, a Reuters survey found, sending compliance with a supply-cutting deal to another record. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries pumped 32.19 million barrels per day last month, the survey found, […]
Nigeria’s central bank keeps main interest rate at 14 pct
Nigeria’s central bank kept its main interest rate at 14 percent on Wednesday, its governor Godwin Emefiele said, after the first policy-setting meeting of the year. Most analysts polled by Reuters had expected rates to be kept on hold with cuts seen later this year. The central bank cancelled its January meeting due to an […]
Allegation of misappropriating N9.8bn laughable—Oduah
Fomer Aviation Minister, Sen. Stella Oduah, has faulted the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, over the inclusion of her name in the list of alleged looters recently released. Oduah, in a statement on Tuesday in Abuja, described the allegation that she misappropriated the sum of N9.8 billion as unfounded and laughable. The […]