Tuesday, June 09, 2020
World Bank projects Nigerian economy to shrink by 3.2% in 2020
Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy and most populous country, is expected to shrink by 3.2 percent in 2020, the World Bank Group said in its June 2020 Global Economic Prospects on Monday. This year’s contraction in activity is set to be the most severe in four decades and this is as a result of the unprecedented… Read more
FG’s planned N2.2trn local borrowing could trigger funding crisis for private sector
Nigeria’s private sector faces an imminent funding crisis as the Federal Government plans to borrow as much as N2.188 trillion locally to fund the amended 2020 budget now put at N10.509 trillion. The government’s review of the 2020 budget has led to a huge increase in deficit by N2.736 trillion to N4.563 trillion, and experts are…Read more
How low-interest rates hold cheap finance cost, debt restructuring opportunity for companies
Nigerian companies with plans to either raise cheap capital or readjust cost of finance may have it on a silver platter as the low interest rate environment presents such opportunities. While interest rates in Nigeria have always been high due to the monetary system in vogue since 2009, which sought to use FGN bonds/T-bills and…Read more
Currency in circulation rises to N2.35tn
Despite lockdown introduced to contain the spread of COVID-19 in the country, huge cash transactions in the economy had continued to rise as currency in circulation rose to N2.35tn in May. Statistics obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria on Monday showed that the figure, which stood at N2.29tn as of the end of March, rose to N2.3tn as of the end of April. Read more
Dangote fertiliser to hit market in September
Dangote Industries Limited has said its $2bn granulated urea fertiliser plant will soon be inaugurated and the product is expected to be available in the market by September. The plant, located at Ibeju Lekki, Lagos, has a capacity of three million tonnes per annum, according to the company. Read more
Producers hopeful of $50 oil price, business sustainability from cuts
Although OPEC+ agreed at the weekend to extend 9.7million barrels cuts in daily crude oil production through the end of July, lending oil prices some support, operators in the exploration industry are hopeful that the cuts would be sustained to aid production and business sustainability. Read more
African air travel market plunges by 98.7 per cent
Airlines in Nigeria and other African countries hit the rock bottom in the month of April, with passenger traffic dropping by a whopping 98.7 per cent. A regional travel estimate recently released by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), showed that the dip was nearly twice as bad as the 49.8 per cent demand drop in March, and a record in the history of modern air travel. Capacity contracted by 87.7 per cent, and load factor dived 65.3 percentage points to just 7.7 per cent of seats filled, lowest among regions. Read more
BUA Cement Grows Profit by 26% to N20bn in First Quarter
BUA Cement Plc has recorded a 25.1 per cent increase in revenue to N54 billion, from the N43.1 billion recorded in its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2020. BUA Cement’s profit before tax (PBT) grew by 15.7 per cent from N17.4 billion to N20.1 billion, while profit after tax (PAT) rose by 26.2 per cent from N15.7 billion to N19.8 billion. Read more
Banks Urged to Expand Financial Inclusion
Financial institutions have been urged to provide services and products such as micro-insurance, micro-credit, among others. A communiqué made available to THISDAY by the Consumer Awareness and Financial Enlightenment Initiative (CAFEi), recommended that for people to be financially included, they must be economically included and have access to decent jobs and decent pay. Read more
NERC: Benin, Niger Owe Nigeria N32.1bn Electricity Debt
The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has disclosed that a total of N32.1 billion is the outstanding debt owed the country by Benin and Niger Republic for electricity supply to the two countries in 2019. Read more
