₦airaland Forum

Nigeria's foreign reserves have declined to a three-month low of $47.303 billion, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria report published on its website on Wednesday.

The foreign exchange reserves declined from $47.697 billion posted on July 11 to $47.303 billion on Wednesday, a decline of $394 million in 13 days.

While the decline is marginal given the size of the reserves, it also gives weight to the Central Bank of Nigeria led Monetary Policy Committee comments on Federal Government saving policy and increased allocations due to the surge in global oil prices.

According to the Monetary Policy Committee, "It was observed that as the prices of crude oil rose in 2017 and 2018, the monthly allocation to various levels of government also increased, suggesting that the Federal Government may not be saving adequately for the future. The Committee, therefore, advised the fiscal authority to build-up buffers, especially now that the price of crude oil is relatively high."

In the communiqué No 119 of the MPC meeting of July 23 and 24, 2018, which was published on Tuesday by the CBN, the committee retained monetary policy rate at 14 percent and expressed optimism that the external reserves would see further accretion, citing bullish global oil market.

Analysts at Investors King Limited attributed the fluctuations in the foreign reserves to government spending, necessary to support economic productivity and sustain its continuous foreign exchange intervention.

"The increase in spending is not out of order, given the fragile state of the recovery. The economy is still recovering, therefore, it is normal to see a surge in government expenditure, especially now that revenue generation has improved through changes made to tax policy. However, the focus should be on the non-oil sector to further diversify the economy and deepen growth."

http://investorsking.com/external-reserves-declines-by-394m-in-13-days/

Union Bank of Nigeria Plc on Wednesday announced a profit before tax of N11.7 billion for the first half of 2018, up from the N9.5 billion reported in the same period last year.

The bank, in its unaudited financial statements for the period ended June 30, 2018, said gross earnings increased by 16 per cent from N72.1 billion recorded in the first half of 2017 to N83.3 billion in H1 2018, largely boosted by the 10 percent surge in interest income and 37 per cent rise in non-interest income.

Interest income rose from N56.6 billion filed in the first half of 2017 to N62.2 billion in H1 2018, while net interest income before impairment grew by 14 percent to N34.4 billion, again boosted by 8.2 percent improvement in the net interest margins that rose 7.9 percent in the same period of 2017.

According to the lender, its non-interest income rose by 37 percent from N15.4 billion in H1 2017 to N21.1 billion in H1 2018, due to the enhanced treasury trading income, recoveries and 311 percent growth in alternate channel revenues.

However, operating costs rose in the period by 21 percent to N39.2 billion, up from N32.4 billion recorded in the same period in 2017. The bank attributed this to a 25 percent increase in regulatory levies from the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria as well as some one-off items.

Customer deposits grew by 3 percent from N802.4 billion as at December 2017 to N826.7 billion in the first half of 2018, with foreign currency deposits rising by 66 percent.

The bank gross loans stood at N508.5 billion in the first half of the year, down from the N560.7 billion recorded in December 2017, largely due to successful recovery efforts and the write-off of some fully provisioned non-performing loans.

Speaking on the results, Mr. Emeka Emuwa, the Chief Executive Officer of Union Bank, said: “In the first half of the year, we have continued to see positive results from our efficiency and productivity drive. Across all our business lines, we witnessed strong underlying performance, translating into improved earnings."

"In the second half of the year, the group would continue to focus on productivity, leveraging enhanced platform to deliver best-in-class services to its customers and taking advantage of targeted opportunities across business lines and geographies," he added.

http://investorsking.com/union-bank-reports-n11-7bn-h1-profit/

economia:
stanbic IBTC bank is charging me 29% please who do I report to?

29 percent is high but banks can't give you 14 per cent, they have to add operating cost and service charge. Abi if you default, who go convert security to cash?

The Central Bank of Nigeria led Monetary Policy Committee on Tuesday left interest rates unchanged as widely anticipated.

The CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele, who announced the decision of the committee at the apex bank's headquarters in Abuja said the committee left Monetary Policy Rate unchanged at 14 per cent, while the Cash Reserves Ratio was left at 22.5 per cent.

Also, Liquidity Ratio was retained at 30 per cent; Asymmetric corridor at +200 and -500 basis points around the MPR.

The governor said the committee strongly considered tightening monetary policy to further curtail the threat of a rise in inflation and sustain capital inflow in the face of sustained monetary policy normalization in the US.

According to him, despite the deceleration in headline inflation, the 11.23 per cent inflation rate recorded in June remains above the apex bank's 6-9 per cent target range. This, he supported with the possible implementation of approved 2018 budget, N9.12 trillion, pre-election spending and injection from fiscal authorities, which are expected to provide the economy with additional liquidity that could pressure consumer prices even more. Therefore, the committee believed higher interest rates would rein-in inflationary pressure towards projected single digit, build investors' confidence and stabilize the foreign exchange market.

On the contrary, the committee was of the view that while raising interest rates could curtail inflation rate at this time, it would weaken consumption, reduce new investments, and trigger the re-pricing of financial assets by deposit money banks, thus limiting credit funding to the real sector.

However, in response to various calls for lower interest rate, the governor said lower monetary policy rate would aid consumption but hurt capital inflows, disrupt foreign exchange, and escalate inflation rate as liquidity to the economy is expected to increase once the federal government commence implementation of the 2018 budget.

Therefore, the seven of the ten-member committee voted to maintain current MPR, while two voted for 50 basis points increase, the remaining member voted for 25 basis points raise. Suggesting that "the committee is likely to hike rate in the fourth quarter depending on the implementation of the 2018 budget, the level of pre-election spending, and the state of global economy, especially the U.S monetary policy, Brexit negotiation and global trade tensions," said analysts at Investors King Ltd.

http://investorsking.com/cbn-leaves-interest-rate-unchanged-at-14/

Equity transactions on the equity sector of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) reopened upbeat yesterday, following price gains recorded by most Highly Capitalised (High Cap) stocks, as market capitalisation rose by N39billion.

Specifically, at the close of transactions yesterday, the All Share Index (ASI) gained 108.52 absolute points, representing a growth of 0.30 per cent to close at 36,711.96 points. Similarly, the market capitalisation gained N39billion to close at N13.299trillion.

The upturn was impacted by gains recorded in medium and large capitalised stocks, amongst which are Dangote Cement, Guaranty Trust Bank, National Salt Company of Nigeria, Chemical and Allied Products (CAP), and Nigerian Breweries.

Analysts at APT Securities and Funds Limited said: “The Nigerian equities market has experienced recovery, which is evidenced in the two consecutive gains of the NSE-ASI coupled with the weight gain in majority of indices. We advise investors to take positions so as to benefit from the favourable movements in the market.”

Also, market breadth closed positive, with 20 gainers versus 18 losers. Cutix recorded the highest price gain of 10 per cent to close at N3.30 per share.

Continental Reinsurance gained six per cent to close at N1.59, while Wema Bank appreciated 5.80 per cent to close at 73 kobo per share.

Transnational Corporation of Nigeria (Transcorp) appreciated by 4.27 per cent to close at N1.22, while Japaul Oil and Maritime Services gained 3.32 per cent to close at 32kobo per share.

On the other hand, Abbey Mortgage Bank led the losers’ chart by 10 per cent, to close at N1.17 per share.

UPL shed 9.80 per cent to close at N2.30, while Forte Oil depreciated by 9.68 per cent to close at N25.20 per share.

UAC Property declined by 9.42 per cent to close at N1.73, and Aiico Insurance also shed 8.96 per cent to close at 61kobo per share.

However, the total volume traded depreciated by 66.72 per cent to 226.27 million shares, worth N2.21billion, and traded in 3,624 deals.

Transactions in the shares of Med-View Airline topped the activity chart with 100 million shares valued at N214million.

Transcorp followed with 16.15 million shares worth N19.56million, while Zenith Bank traded 11.29 million shares valued at N260.27million.

http://investorsking.com/equity-market-gains-n39-billion/

Prices of goods and services in Africa’s largest economy Nigeria declined for a 17th consecutive month in June, the National Bureau of Statistics reported on Monday.

The Consumer Price Index, which measures inflation rate declined from 11.61 per cent in May to 11.23 per cent in June.

Urban inflation also declined from 12.08 per cent year-on-year in May to 11.68 per cent in June, while rural inflation eased to 10.83 per cent.

The food index dropped to 12.98 per cent in June, up from 13.45 per cent recorded in May and more than 20 per cent filed over a year ago.

Since the central bank adjusted its forex policy and introduced Investors and Exporters (I & E) forex window, the ease of doing business has improved and exchange rates moderated enough to sustain declining consumer prices.

The CBN has reiterated its commitment to single digit inflation and converging exchange rates, therefore, the apex bank is expected to leave monetary policy rate unchanged in its meeting due later today in Abuja to protect capital inflows and contained exchange rates.

“With the U.S. Federal Reserve projected to increase interest rates two more times this year, it is logical for the monetary policy committee to maintain the current interest rate in order sustain capital importation and economic growth,” said analysts at Investors King Ltd.

“Trade tensions and the possibility of Saudi Arabia flooding the market with more crude oil has increased risks to emerging economies, especially commodity-dependent economies. Therefore, this is not the time to lower interest rates if economic productivity and job creation are priorities.”

The I & E forex window hit a record $1.7 billion transactions in one week in June, further attesting to growing economic activities, especially in the manufacturing sector where the manufacturing PMI sustained growth at 56.5 in May. While this was lower than the 56.9 filed in April, the difference was attributed to a slower increase in inventories that stood at 58.7 in the said month.

However, with the introduction of Chinese Yuan by the Central Bank of Nigeria, procurement of needed inventories should improve and further deepen economic progress.

http://investorsking.com/nigerias-inflation-declines-11-23-june/

Investors, who earn a living from short-and medium-term instruments offered in the money market, increased their spending by 20.53 per cent in June as total investments in the Fixed Income and Currency (FIC) markets rose to N17.23trillion.

“Transaction turnover in the markets for the month ended June 30, 2018 amounted to N17.23trillion, a 20.53 per cent (N2.93trillion) increase from the value recorded in May and a 36.49 percent (N4.61trillion) increase year –on- year(YoY),”a statement from FMDQ OTC revealed.

The treasury bills and FX segments jointly accounted for 79.35 per cent of total turnover in the FIC market in June, representing a marginal increase of 3.44 percentage points from the 75.91 per cent recorded in May. FX market turnover recorded the highest month-on-month increase, growing by 34.50 percent (N1.79trillion), while unsecured placement/takings turnover recorded the highest month-on-month (MoM) decrease, falling by 42.54 percent (N0.03trillion).

Total FX market turnover in the review month was $19.80billion, a 34.04 percent ($5.03billion) increase from the turnover recorded in May ($14.77billion). Turnover at the Investors & Exporters (I&E) FX Window in June was $3.93billion, representing a 38.59 percent ($2.47billion) MoM decrease from the value recorded in May ($6.40billion), and resulting in a decrease in its contribution to the total FX market turnover to 19.85per cent from 43.33per cent in May. However, the total turnover at the I&E FX Window for half year -ended June 2018, increased to $30.28billion.

Analysis of FX turnover by trade type showed that turnover increased across all trade types, with Inter- Member trades recording the highest relative MoM growth in turnover, increasing by 82.65per cent ($1.35billion), while Member-Clients trades recorded the highest nominal MoM growth in turnover, increasing by $2.52billion (28.97 per cent). Member-CBN trades also recorded a MoM increase in turnover by 26.11 per cent ($1.16billion).

In terms of contribution to total FX turnover, Inter-Member trades contributed 15.05 per cent to total FX turnover in June, a 4.01ppts increase from the 11.04 per cent contribution recorded in May. Member-Client and Member- CBN trades both contributed 56.62 per cent and 28.28 per cent to total FX turnover in June, decreasing from 58.90 per cent and 30.06percent in May respectively

Analysis of FX turnover by product type showed that turnover in FX Spot and Derivatives increased MoM in line with the trend in total FX turnover, with both increasing by 29.82per cent and 46.60per cent respectively.

FX Spot remained the main driver of total FX turnover, with a MoM increase by $2.80billion (29.70 per cent), while FX Derivatives recorded a MoM increase of $2.25billion (41.59 per cent) driven mainly by FX Futures turnover which increased MoM by $2.39billion (292.68 per cent).

In June, the 24th naira-settled OTC FX Futures contract (NGUS JUN 27, 2018) with a contract size of $638.87million, matured and was settled, whilst a new $1.00billion 12-month contract (NGUS JUN 26, 2019) was offered by the CBN at $/N362.60.

Also, in June, the naira depreciated at the I&E FX Window, losing N0.35 to close at $/N361.32 (from $/N360.97 as at May 31, 2018). The depreciation of the naira at the I&E FX Window resulted in a lower spread of N0.68 between the $/N rate at the I&E FX Window and the parallel market, due to the appreciation of the Naira by N1.00 at the parallel market in June to close at $/N362.00 (from $/N363.00 as at May 31, 2018). The CBN Official Spot rate appreciated by N0.20 to close at $/N305.75 (from $/N305.95 as at May 31, 2018)

The total turnover in the fixed income market was N7.85trillion in June, representing a 19.73 per cent (N1.29trn) MoM increase in turnover. The increase in turnover was driven mainly by an 18.13per cent (N1.02trillion) MoM increase in T.bills turnover, as it remained the major driver of liquidity in the fixed income market, accounting for 84.95per cent of the total fixed income market turnover, albeit 1.15 percentage points lower than its contribution in May.

Total T.bills outstanding as at June 30, 2018 stood at N13.76trillion, representing a 1.75 per cent (N0.24trillion) MoM decline, driven by a net redemption of T.bills in the month of June. Conversely, total FGN Bonds outstanding increased marginally by 0.41 percent (N0.03trillion ) MoM to close at N7.83trillion, suggesting the FGN refinanced some of its short-term obligations with longer term FGN Bonds while increasing cash liquidity in the market

Trading intensity in the T.bills and FGN Bonds markets increased from 0.41 and 0.11 in May, to 0.48 and 0.15 in June respectively, while trading intensity for T.bills and FGN Bonds in first half of 2018 were 2.67 and 0.71, compared to 3.75 and 0.79 in H1 2017 respectively. T.bills within the 6-12 months maturity remained the most actively traded, accounting for 28.28 percent of the total fixed income market turnover in June, despite decreasing from the 37.42 percent contribution reported in May.

Turnover recorded in the secured money market (i.e. Repos/Buy-Backs) was N2.32trillion for June, representing a 4.70 per cent (N0.11trillion) MoM decrease from the value recorded in May (N2.44trillion), and a YoY decrease of 33.98 per cent in June, compared to the 6.98 per cent YoY decrease recorded in May.

Similarly, unsecured placements/takings closed the month with a turnover of N42.66billion, representing a 42.54 percent (N31.59billion) MoM decrease on the turnover recorded in May (N74.25billion), and a YoY decrease of 68.23per cent (N91.64billion).

Average O/N7 NIBOR8 decreased by 11.12ppts to close at 11.65 per cent in June from 22.77 per cent reported for May, suggesting an increase in liquidity in the inter-bank market, possibly driven by injection of cash in the market from the FGN’s activity in the fixed income market during the month.

Total number of executed trades reported on the E-Bond Trading System in June was 13,101, representing a MoM decline of 5,969 in the number of executed trades, as total executed trades in T.bills and FGN bonds declined by 5,162 (31.15 per cent) and 807 (32.32 per cent) respectively in June 2018.

http://investorsking.com/fmdq-investors-splash-n17-23trn-fixed-income-currency-instruments-june/

PassingShot:
Of course you know that my saying "bought" doesn't mean buying off the shelf. The ministry is already discussing this seriously with Boeing. By the way, the licence to do the PPP for the national carrier is valid for a year which means even if the December target is missed, it can still be done till around May/June next year.

Fingers crossed.

The earliest date would be around 2020 if they work really hard. Something I doubt since FG influence will be limited going by the poor stake of 5%, this is another dangerous decision. Fg needs more than 5% to effectively influence operation and control cost for the masses because that should be the essence of a national carrier.

PassingShot:
[s][/s]
The plane being planned is &37 and not 777. It costs between $55m and $80m depending on the grade. At launch, just five units will be bought.

Now, swerve since it's obvious you belly-ache about the news.

This is a very good project but the numbers are not adding up. You don't just buy planes, you pre-order from manufacturers, which certainly take more than five months needed to kick-start the whole project by FG.

Even PPP documentation will take more than five months to finalize. I mean Qatar and Ethiopia are interested in the project and so are some British investors. This bureaucratic process will take months. Except the government is not serious with the whole project or it is another campaign strategy.

The $300 million is not enough to buy five units and provide reasonable liquidity to run the project going by your numbers.

The Federal Government has threatened to withdraw the licence of labour contractors that engage in anti-labour practices.

The Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, gave the warning while hosting the newly- elected members of the National Administrative Council (NAC) of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) in Abuja.

He said the ministry was working on reforming the grant and renewal of licence to labour contractors to ensure adherence to expatriate quotas, and eschew unfair labour practices.

Ngige insisted that the ministry was poised to redress the situation, saying the sanction against contractors that flout the law was in consonance with the Executive Order of the Federal Government to ensure that jobs that are reserved for indigenes are not given to expatriates as well as protect indigenous products over foreign products.

He said: “We have started reforming the process of granting and renewing Recruiters’ Licence and we will not grant or renew the license of recruiters who compromise by aiding and abetting “yellow dog” contracts, as any recruiters found abusing expatriate quotas will have his licence revoked or not renewed.”

He said the ministry was making effort to close up identified gaps in the operational guidelines and labour laws in the oil and gas sector.

The new President, Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), Comrade Williams Akporeha, decried unfair labour practices being perpetrated by labour contractors in the oil and gas sector.

“It is so sad that in the oil and gas industry as it is in other sectors, our employees have become more or less slave labour with no hope for career growth and development. In almost all multinational oil companies in Nigeria, there are no more direct permanent jobs for the middle level to lower level cadre,” he said.

William said the union is committed to the promotion of industrial peace and harmony in the country.

Recently, the oil workers under the auspices of NUPENGASSAN declared that they could no longer guarantee industrial harmony in the sector if government fail to curb the abuses of workers’ rights by oil companies and labour recruiters.

At the end of their joint NAC and National Executive Council (NEC) meeting under the umbrella of NUPENGASSAN, both NUPENG and PENGASSAN condemned the increasing impunities and anti labour tendencies of most indigenous and multinational oil companies in the oil and gas industry operating in the country.

PENGASSAN President and Chairman of NUPENG Olabode Johnson regretted that the situation was compounded by the inability of the Federal Government to address the issue and the ministry’s helplessness.

Olabode said: “The situation was compounded by the fact that the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment that is supposed to be the watchdog in the areas of compliance with extant labour laws is unfortunately handicapped because of poor understanding of the contract processing and workings in the oil and gas industry.”

He urged the Federal Government to establish a special body to mediate on the issues.

“The Council-in-Session demands that a special mediation unit comprising experts from NNPC (Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation) Human Resources, NAPIMS (National Petroleum Investment Services) and other relevant units be set up to apprehend industrial relations/labour disputes and treat them with dispatch before escalating to level of any form of Industrial actions,” he said.

While observing that it is inevitable to keep contract staffing out of the system, he called on the government and industry agencies to help the industry reverse back to the old system.

http://investorsking.com/govt-threatens-to-sanction-recruiters-in-oil-sector/

The Central Bank of Nigeria says it has recovered over N65bn from commercial banks in the country for wrongful deductions and charges from customers’ deposits and other transactions in the last six years.

The Acting Director, Corporate Communications, CBN, Mr Isaac Okorafor, stated this on Wednesday on the sidelines of a two-day fair with the theme: ‘Promoting Financial Stability and Economic Development’ for stakeholders in Asaba, Delta State.

Okorafor explained that the recovery was made between 2012 and now, stressing that the funds had since been returned to customers, who hitherto complained of wrongful charges and deductions by commercial banks.

“We have recovered and returned to customers over N65bn out of complaints by people over acts of treatment on customers, wrong charges, wrong deductions and others since 2012/2013 when we started,” he said.

He stated that the purpose of the fair was to have a face to face interaction with customers and critical stakeholders in order to understand their challenges and proffer solutions.

Okorafor added that hawking of various denominations of the naira was an offence punishable under the CBN Act of 2005, and warned that the apex bank would not tolerate the breach of its Act, and called on those involved, particularly its staff members, to desist from the practice as they would be dismissed if caught.

He, however, blamed the police for the lack of prosecution of offenders who were caught hawking naira during various raids in Lagos, Port Harcourt, Onitsha, Ibadan and other cities.

He stated, “The CBN is very committed to making sure that people do not hawk the naira, because it is an offence punishable under the CBN Act of 2005. We have made it clear to any of our staff involved in the practice that they will be dismissed.

“We have also made it clear to banks that any of them caught doing it will be severely punished. We are a regulator and not a law enforcement agency. It is the duty of the Nigerian Police to enforce the law. We have collaborated with them at different times.

“We have had raids in Lagos, Port Harcourt, Onitsha, Ibadan and so on, and we will continue to do that, and people have been caught and money confiscated. We are waiting on the police to begin to prosecute those people.”

http://investorsking.com/illegal-deductions-cbn-returns-n65bn-bank-customers/

Second quarter financial reports are coming out, its called sustained profit taking.

However, the $680 million verdict against Oando by the London Court of International Arbitration also hurt the market.

The market is Oil dependent and with global crude oil trading at $72 a barrel ahead of Saudi Arabia supply increase. It is normal for a market like NSE to be impacted.

The same second-quarter reports that are pushing US stocks to a record-high and pushed Jeff Bezos net worth above $150 billion mark is hurting Nigeria. Diversification edge.

Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo on Tuesday in Sokoto State inaugurated the BUA cement and coal power plants built at the cost of $350m (N107bn).

The cement plant situated in Kalambina, Sokoto State, has an installed capacity of 1.5 million metric tonnes per annum, while the coal power plant is a 32-megawatts multi-fuel captive plant capable of generating more power than what the entire Sokoto State is currently generates, according to the Chairman, BUA Group, Abdulsamad Rabiu.

In his remarks, the Vice President, Osinbajo stated that Nigeria, which currently produces over 40 million metric tonnes of cement per annum, was the largest producer of the commodity in Africa and that the BUA cement plant would further consolidate the Federal Government’s efforts to be self-sufficient in cement production and a net exporter of the product.

He noted that the investment by the firm in the plant and others like it were a clear demonstration that the country had vast capacity and potential for profitable investments.

The vice-president stated that the next three years would be critical in Nigeria’s infrastructure, adding that for the country to be where it ought to be in terms of development, construction was crucial.

According to him, with a housing deficit of 17 million and the fact that concrete roads have been discovered to be better than asphalted roads in terms of durability, it shows that cement will feature prominently in Nigeria’s infrastructural development efforts.

He noted, however, that with the volume of demand and work that would go to the sector, it would be possible to construct roads and build houses at cheaper rates than being done currently.

“I believe that between Rabiu and his brother, Dangote, they can find a way to bring down the price of cement,” Osinbajo added.

Also speaking, the Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal, said the BUA cement plant was one of the efforts of the state government in partnership with the private sector to harness the vast and unexploited natural resources in the state.

He stated that the state had been encouraging more private sector investments through incentives, tax breaks, waivers, access to finance and others.

According to him, the focus of the state has recently shifted to the Small and Medium Enterprises sector, while also formulating a strategic investment plan to support and guide businesses that produce raw materials for the productive sector.

http://investorsking.com/osinbajo-inaugurates-n107bn-buas-sokoto-cement-plant/

The Minister of State for Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika, has disclosed that the Federal Government had started negotiations with aircraft manufacturers and investors towards the unveiling of the national carrier at the ongoing Farnborough International Air Show in the United Kingdom.

Sirika disclosed this in a statement by Mr James Odaudu, Deputy Director, Media and Public Affairs from Farnborough on Monday.

He said that the Nigerian delegation which he led, had met with the Management of Airplane manufacturers Airbus to negotiate the acquisition of the desired aircraft for the nation.

Sirika also disclosed that negotiations with Boeing and other Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) would take place on Tuesday.

According to the Minister, the ongoing International Air Show is an opportunity to negotiate with airline manufacturers with the view of getting the most competitive and best value-for-money deals for the country.

He said he would also explore every opportunity available at the air show, an event that brings the biggest and the best in the industry, to attract more prospective investors into the Nigerian aviation environment.

Sirika explained that the show would provide an opportunity to establish a Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility in Nigeria, concession of some airports in the country and other components of the Aviation Roadmap the federal government.

The minister had earlier written on his twitter handle: “Negotiating Aircraft orders with Airbus at Farnborough ahead of National Carrier unveiling on Wednesday.

“Negotiations with Boeing and other OEMs tomorrow.

“Met with Standard Chartered Bank earlier. All is looking good!”

The minister had on July 6, announced that the name and logo of the airline would be unveiled during the air show in the UK and assured that the airline would commence operations in December.

http://investorsking.com/national-carrier-sirika-meets-aircraft-manufacturers-investors-uk/

The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has announced that it realised N2.52 trillion from various taxes from January to June 2018.

The amount showed that the Service had realised 75 per cent of its total target for the year, which is an improvement over what was realised in the corresponding period in 2017.

A report on the revenue performance by the Agency, submitted to the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, confirmed that the figure represented an increase of N746 billion, representing 42 per cent when compared to the N1.7 trillion total tax revenue realised in the corresponding period in 2017.

An analysis of the total amount shows that N1.6 trillion was collected as Petroleum Profit Tax (PPT) as against N636 billion resulting in a variance of N532 billion.

From the company income tax (CIT), the FIRS realized a total of N680 billion, which was N128 billion more than the N551 billion in the previous year. The Value Added Tax (VAT) yielded a total of N536 billion in the period under review, which was N68.8 billion more than the N467 billion realised in 2017.

http://investorsking.com/firs-tax-revenue-hits-n2-52tr-six-months/

The Federal Government on Wednesday approved contracts totalling about N358bn for roads, bridges and power at a meeting of the Federal Executive Council meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari.

The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, disclosed this to State House correspondents at the end of the meeting.

Fashola said the council approved contracts totalling N8.9bn for the construction of the Ikom Bridge and roads in Cross River State.

The minister explained that the idea behind the contracts was to create access to the ports for trucks.

He said the bridge, in its current state, was restricting the movement of trucks.

According to Fashola, the proposed new bridge and roads will help facilitate the activities in the Calabar Port and ease the challenges being faced by the Nigerian Ports Authority.

He said the council also approved N11.77bn contract for the Section II of 37km Nguru-Gashua-Benmari Road, with delivery time of 24 months.

The third road project, according to him, is the 50km Ilorin-Igbeti-Keshi Road, Section I, in Kwara State, which was awarded at the cost of N8.6bn.

Fashola said the FEC also re-awarded the Arochukwu-Ohafia Road, Section I, at the cost of N5.4bn, with a completion period of 20 months.

He stated that the council also approved the procurement of an automated meter reading machine.

The contract, which he said was at the request of the Transmission Company of Nigeria, included the installation of equipment and training of engineers, who would operate and maintain the system.

The contract, the minister noted, was awarded at the cost of N933.7m.

Fashola said, “The purpose is to facilitate remote meter reading of wholesale at the custody and trading points. This is different from remote reading of retailed meters used by consumers like you and I.

“The point to be made is that the entire value chain from where gas is produce to where it is fed into the pipes of the Gencos to produce energy, to where that energy is picked up from the transmission company, to the trading points at stations of the distribution companies and the feeders, is entirely metered. Those are the bulk trading meters that we are talking about.

“The challenges that we have is that many of these meters, sizable number of them, still have to be inspected manually to have to be read. And that is the basis for computing the settlement system at the end of the month. That causes delay in accounts settlement.”

http://investorsking.com/fg-okays-n358bn-contracts-roads-others/

There were more than two losing stocks for every gaining stock yesterday at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) as investors opened up their offers to lower prices to attract buyers.

Benchmark indices at the Exchange indicated average decline of 0.60 per cent, equivalent to net capital depreciation of N82 billion within the five-hour trading session yesterday. The decline depressed the negative average year-to-date return to -2.15 per cent.

The All Share Index (ASI)-the common value-based index that tracks share prices at the Exchange declined from its opening index of 37,647.93 points to close at 37,421.01 points. Aggregate market value of all quoted equities also dropped from its opening value of N13.638 trillion to close at N13.556 trillion.

With 27 losers to 12 gainers, all sectoral indices closed negative. The Industrial Goods Index and NSE Insurance Index declined by 2.7 per cent each. The NSE Banking Index and NSE Oil & Gas Index dropped by 1.1 per cent each while the Consumer Goods Index depreciated by 0.6 per cent.

“We opine that the current bearish sentiment in the market is driven by some institutional investors reducing their positions in bellwethers stocks. Nevertheless, we believe an upturn in performance in the near term, will be buoyed by bulk bargain hunting in some fundamentally sound stocks,” Afrinvest Securities stated.

Oil and gas stocks led the losers with Seplat Petroleum Development Company leading with a loss of N15 to close at N635. Total Nigeria followed with a loss of N10 to close at N200. Lafarge Africa declined by N2.25 to close at N35.75. Guaranty Trust Bank dropped by N1.40 to close at N40.10 while Nigerian Breweries lost N1.10 to close at N110 per share.

On the positive side, Forte Oil led the gainers with a gain of N2.70 to close at N29.85. Custodian Investment rose by 49 kobo to close at N5.70.Ecobank Transnational Incorporated appreciated by 20 kobo to close at N20.60. Unilever Nigeria chalked up 15 kobo to close at N51.70 while Cement Company of Northern Nigeria (CCNN), NEM Insurance and Access Bank added 10 kobo each to close at N23, N3.40 and N10.50 respectively.

Total turnover stood at 213.20 million shares valued at N3.76 billion in 4,043 deals. Zenith Bank was the most active stock with 39.93 million shares worth N965.09 million. FBN Holdings followed with 21.69 million shares valued at N227.22 million while Transnational Corporation of Nigeria placed third with 21.61 million shares valued at N26.97 million.

http://investorsking.com/equities-lose-n82b-selloff-worsens/

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation announced on Monday that it had commenced a technical framing workshop and subsequent project signing ceremony of the seven critical gas development projects to deliver about 3.4 billion standard cubic feet of gas per day to bridge the medium-term supply gap by 2020.

It said the 7CGDP was an integral leg of the gas development strategy designed to leverage the full potential of gas to meet the target of generating at least 15,000 megawatts of electricity by 2020.

The Group Managing Director, NNPC, Dr Maikanti Baru, said the projects would also close the demand-supply gap in the domestic gas market.

He stated that the corporation had engaged DeltaAfrik/Worley Parson and Crestech/Penspen to work with the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company and NNPC joint venture partners and other stakeholders to achieve the set project deliverables.

Baru said the corporation was working closely with other agencies like the Department of Petroleum Resources and the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board to ensure timely approvals for the project and ensure that lease renewals requests related to the projects were supported for renewal by relevant agencies.

The Managing Director, Shell Petroleum Development Company, Mr Osagie Okunbor, whose firm is handling three out of the seven projects, pledged the commitment of the company to the successful execution of the 7CGDP, noting that Shell was fully aligned with Nigeria’s gas strategy and aspirations.

The 7CGDP include the development of the 4.3 trillion cubic feet Assa North/Ohaji South field; the development of the 6.4 TCF unitised gas fields (Samabri-Biseni, Akri-Oguta, Ubie-Oshi and Afuo-Ogbainbri); and the development of the seven TCF NPDC’s Oil Mining Leases 26, 30 and 42.

Others are the development of 2.2 TCF SPDC JV gas supply to Brass Fertiliser Company; the cluster development of five TCF OML 13 to support the expansion of Seven Energy Uquo Gas Plant; and the cluster development of 10 TCF Okpokunou/Tuomo West (OMLs 35 and 62).

SaintChukz:
Do you know Mark equally has investments in other ventures other than Facebook?

Ozlo, Oculus VR, Instagram, Whatsapp, etc? Now compared those highly volatile/uncertain business to Washinton Post, Whole Foods, space company called Blue Origin, Nash Holdings, etc. Most of which has not kick started earning wise. Blue Origin is still projected to land on the moon by 2023. Yet Jeff Bezos's networth is almost twice Mark's networth despite Trump attacks. Jeff Bezos is going to be the richest for a very long time, he is the first to cross $100 billion, he will do $200 billion much faster.

post=69183301:
He will be NUMBER ONE soon!

Lol.. earning report is what boosted his stock's value. Jeff Bezos will be the number one for a very long time. He is way too diversify, too liquid to be impacted by things that will hurt Facebook. Even Trump's attacks can't hurt him, rather he added more than 40 billion under Donald Trump administration.

dreamwords:
Flyca ///
What im trying to tell u that olden days engineering/technological laws still holds and can be quoted . unless Nullified ones .oh yes I'm an engineering
student,,
F=ma , u can quote that anytime and it remains valid and the law is more than ten years old

Those are laws that rarely changed. You can quote them using recent works done on identified gap. Even the Power System Stability,1964, referenced by the lecturer has recent edition published on March 1995. Meaning, the author has identified certain areas that no longer hold values or can be improved.

The lecturer was just lazy.

The Central Bank of Nigeria is wooing local businesses importing goods from China to use the yuan instead of the United States’ dollar in its effort to support the naira and boost reserves.

The CBN, in May, signed the agreement with the People’s Bank of China to facilitate trade between the two countries and enhance foreign reserve management, making Nigeria the third country in Africa (after South Africa and Egypt) to sign such a deal with China.

The central bank officials on Wednesday held a town hall meeting with businesses in Lagos to introduce the yuan for imports from China ahead of plans to start auctioning the Asian currency later this month.

The dollar is Nigeria’s main trade currency. The country suffered severe dollar shortages after the price of crude oil, its top export and main source of forex, plunged in late 2014, prompting it to introduce capital controls in 2015.

It now has multiple exchange rates against the US currency and has been selling the dollar on the interbank market to boost liquidity after floating the naira for investors.

“The central bank will encourage users importing goods from China to use the yuan and not the dollar,” officials said.

“Dollar demand burden arising from trades with China would be lifted from our forex reserves,” they said, adding that initial yuan trades could be small.

According to the official, the deal is aimed at reducing reliance on the dollar, and, as such, reduce the pressure on the naira-dollar exchange rate.

Under the swap arrangement, the CBN would hold N720bn in an account in favour of the PBOC while the Chinese central bank would hold 15 billion yuan, implying an exchange rate of N48 to the yuan.

The bank also said the move was aimed at encouraging Chinese firms buying local raw materials and semi-finished goods to pay in naira. However payment for crude oil sold to China would be in the US dollar, they said.

Nigeria has been trying several options to curb pressure on the naira. But some of its plans may require time to materialise as it needs to develop its economy in order to cut imports.

It currently runs a large trade deficit with China, its biggest trading partner. Nigeria imported goods worth almost $2bn per annum from China last year as against almost $500m imported by the Chinese, figures showed.

Economists fear that currency swap could worsen the deficit and trade balance. Some importers told Reuters that strong naira would erase the benefit of the swap but added that the naira might weaken especially after elections next year.

http://investorsking.com/cbn-woos-nigerians-use-chinese-yuan-imports/

Elvino1:
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Get affidavit before going to the embassy.

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This is what I saw.

The Nigerian Inter-Bank Settlement System, on Thursday said the banking industry lost the sum of N12.30 billion to various frauds between 2014 and 2017.

Managing Director, NIBBS, Mr Adebisi Shonubi, disclosed this at the third Annual Banking Security Summit organised by MAXUT Consulting in partnership with OneSpan, a global data security company in Lagos.

Shonubi said the figure was lost in 41,461 fraud cases between 2014 and 2017.

Specifically, he noted that 2014 fraud volume stood at 1,461, 10,743 (2015), 19,531 in 2016 and 25,043 in 2017.

He said, “Industry fraud overview with focus on mobile & payments related frauds,” Shonubi said the industry lost N6.22 billion in 2014 on attempted fraud value of N7.76 billion

Shonubi who was represented by Mr Olufemi Fadairo, Head, Industry Security Services, said the sum of N2.26 billion was lost in 2015 on attempted fraud value of N4.37 billion in 2015.

According to him, the industry lost the sum of N2.19 billion in 2016 on attempted fraud value of N4.37 billion.

Shonubi said gender fraud analysis during the period showed males accounted for 73 per cent, while females accounted for 23 per cent.

He said more fraud cases were reported in 2017, with an increase of 28 per cent compared with 2016 but with less financial loss.

On fraud channel, Shonubi said the Automated Teller Machine accounted for the highest fraud in 2017 with an actual loss of N497.64 million with a fraud volume of 9,823.

According to him, mobile trailed with N347.65 million loss on 5,055 fraud volume, while across the counter transactions accounted for N259. 02 million loss in 314 fraud volume.

He said “While fraud trend is generally on the decline, mobile fraud trend alone is on the increase.”

Shonubi said mobile fraud would overtake ATM fraud by 2020 with the rate of increasing fraud in the channel.

He listed the top three mobile threats in Nigeria to include phone theft, SIM swaps and kidnaps.

Shonubi, however, called on Nigerians to shield themselves by ensuring phone lock, SIM lock, swap/recycle checks.

http://investorsking.com/banks-lost-n12-3bn-to-fraudsters-in-four-years-nibss/

U.S. President Donald Trump signed what he called a “very comprehensive” document with North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un, capping a highly anticipated summit in Singapore aimed at overcoming decades of hostility and mistrust.

“We both want to do something,” Trump said on Tuesday, with Kim sitting at his side, later promising the two would meet again. “We both are going to do something. We’ve developed a very special bond.”

The North Korea leader said through a translator that the document “heralds a new start, leaving the past behind.” He added: “the world will witness a major change now.”

Neither Trump nor Kim gave any indication about the contents of the document, though the president said he would elaborate for the media later Tuesday. The signing ceremony came more than four hours into a meeting in Singapore aimed at easing decades of tensions between adversaries that only last year seemed on the brink of nuclear war.

Trump said that he and Kim would be meeting again, though he offered no timeline for when that might happen.

“Our whole relationship with North Korea and the Korean Peninsula is going to a very much different situation than it has in the past.”

For each leader, the summit represented a major gamble, and the outcome will be dissected around the globe for a sense of whether one of the world’s greatest security threats — Kim’s nuclear arsenal — can be eliminated. The talks were seen as a key first step to a formal end of the Korean War, which remains unfinished after a 1953 armistice.

The two men kicked off their summit with a handshake shortly after 9 a.m. local time Tuesday — 9 p.m. Monday in New York — marking the first face-to-face encounter between a sitting U.S. president and a North Korean leader.

As the meeting opened at the Capella Hotel on Singapore’s Sentosa Island, the two men entered with somber expressions that quickly gave way to smiles. Moments earlier, Trump had announced his chief economic adviser, Larry Kudlow, had been sent to the hospital after suffering a heart attack.

“It’s my honor, and we will have a terrific relationship, I have no doubt,” Trump said in brief remarks to reporters moments after their history-making handshake.

“It was not an easy journey,” Kim said earlier. “We’ve had a past that stopped us from advancing, and wrong behaviors and practices sometimes closed our eyes and ears, but we’ve overcome those to come to this point.”

The two leaders emerged about three hours into their meetings after a working lunch with senior aides. Trump spoke briefly to the press, letting reporters know that there would be a document signing, then appeared to show Kim his armored presidential limousine.

“It’s going great,” Trump said, with Kim at his side. “We had a really fantastic meeting. A lot of progress. Really very positive, I think better than anybody could’ve expected. Top of the line. Really good.”

Trump was joined in the talks by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who played a crucial role setting up the summit, National Security Adviser John Bolton and Chief of Staff John Kelly. Kim was accompanied by North Korean Vice Chairman Kim Yong Chol, Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho and former Foreign Minister Ri Su Yong.

Just meeting with Trump marks a diplomatic accomplishment for Kim, who has emerged from isolation in recent months and rapidly increased his outreach to other world leaders.

By sitting down with an American president — a longtime goal of North Korea’s government — Kim’s regime is advancing its effort to establish its “reputation, respect, and credibility as a nuclear weapon state,” said Michael J. Green, senior vice president for Asia and Japan Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Drama surrounding the event heightened in the hours before the leaders greeted each other, as the two sides shifted their schedules. After Kim made clear that he would be leaving Singapore by the end of the day, the White House announced that Trump would depart in the evening after delivering his afternoon news conference.

Trump wants the complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantling of North Korea’s nuclear weapons program. Kim is seeking a security guarantee — and possibly a peace treaty — and the removal of the U.S.’s nuclear umbrella protecting allies South Korea and Japan.

Kim has rejected calls to unilaterally give up his weapons in return for economic aid, and instead has proposed a step-by-step denuclearization process. His public statements and state-run media indicate he wants a deal to ease sanctions, but that he won’t give up his nuclear weapons until he feels safe enough to retain power without them.

Pompeo on Monday drew a firm line, saying the U.S. plans to keep sanctions in place until North Korea eliminates its nuclear weapons capability. Complete, verifiable, irreversible denuclearization, he told reporters, “is the only outcome that the United States will accept.”

Yet the top U.S. diplomat added Trump is ready to offer “unique” guarantees to ease the regime’s concerns about giving up a nuclear arsenal that provides a deterrent against foreign adversaries while also serving as a key point of national pride.

http://investorsking.com/trump-signs-comprehensive-document-kim-summit-ends/ mynd44

Trading at the stock market resumed for the week on a positive note yesterday, with the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) All-Share Index rising by 0.45 per cent to close at 38,844.32. The market had recovered N700 billion last week after bargain hunters swooped on oversold counters. For four days running, the market was bullish but fell on Friday as some investors paused for profit taking.

However, the bullish trend resumed yesterday as 30 stocks appreciated while 20 others depreciated. Consequently, the month-to-date and year-to-date growth improved to 1.94 per cent and 1.57 per cent in that order.

According analysts at Meristem Securities Limited, trading recovered from the losses recorded on the final trading session last week.

“The gains on counters in the banking and consumer goods sectors drove the performance of the market. We expect this to continue for the remainder of the week, even with bouts of profit taking on some of the counters,” they said.

Bellwethers such as Nigerian Breweries Plc, FBN Holdings Plc, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc and Zenith Bank Plc were among the advancers. But NASCON Allied Industries Plc led the overall gainers’ table with 7.1 per cent.

Diamond Bank Plc trailed with 6.5 per cent, while Japaul Oil & Maritime Services Plc gained 6.4 per cent. NAHCO Plc and Equity Assurance Plc chalked up 5.0 per cent each. AIICO Insurance Plc and Presco Plc gained 4.8 per cent and 4.7 per cent respectively.

Conversely, Berger Paints Nigeria Plc led the price losers with 5.0 per cent, followed by BOC Gases Plc with 4.9 per cent. Eterna Plc shed 4.7 per cent just as Prestige Assurance Plc and Wema Bank Plc went down by 4.4 per cent and 3.9 per cent respectively.

Meanwhile, activity level was mixed as volume traded improved by 187.2 per cent to 603.2 million shares while value traded remained flat at N3.9 billion. The most traded stocks by volume were Ikeja Hotel Plc (279.6 million shares), United Capital Plc (79.1 million shares) and African Prudential Plc (56.8 million shares) while Ikeja Hotel Plc (N705.0 million shares), Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc (N641.9 million) and GTBank (N437.7 million) were the top traded stocks by value.

http://investorsking.com/index-gains-0-45-market-opens-week-bullish-note/

Ugosample:
yea true


even China kerps dollar reserves


China has more work to do, but currency manipulations is one of the reasons why they are well positioned for global trade.

If they become more straightforward with that, they may lose their trade advantage.

So these things have ups and downs

They will lose it either way. It is the reason China's trade deficit with USA is so huge and the very reason Donald Trump is imposing taxes on import goods and about to announce another $50 billion tax on imported Chinese goods. It's not ethical to lower your currency value to gain competitive advantage.

Ugosample:
Total African demand is insignificant

I hope you know this


It's when markets like Europe, the middle and far east shift focus that it will be worrisome

But Africa; D

Europeans were the first to hold renminbi reserves after IMF adopted the currency as one of its reserve currencies in 2016. However, US dollar still remained the world's most dominant currency with two-thirds of the world's $6.9 trillion foreign reserves in US dollar.

Renminbi reserves is the lowest among IMF's basket of currencies, slightly above 1 percent, and will remain low for a while. Mainly because of People's Bank of China's intermittent currency manipulation that over time has eroded profits. Even, Chinese sellers prefer the US dollar to their own currency to curb currency fluctuations.

China needs more than just global trades to push Renminbi, 'Effective and transparent economic policy without regular currency devaluation to aid exports.' The currency swap ($2b) is good for Nigeria but it holds no meaning for over $11 trillion economy.

doctorseven:
please do you know any other online free masters program for other courses especially health or health related.
thanks.

Masters, No but degree, yes.

papaking1:
Thank you sir. Can I pm you?

Yes sir.