Author: Ogochukwu Ndubuisi

Court Dismisses Dangote Refinery’s N100bn Suit against NNPC The Federal High Court in Abuja, on Wednesday, dismissed the N100 billion suit filed by Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE against Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and its co-defendants over oil import licence dispute. Justice Mohammed Umar dismissed the suit following an oral application by the defence lawyers after counsel who appeared for Dangote, C.O. Adegbe, withdrew the suit. The suit, which was formerly before Justice Inyang Ekwo, began denovo (afresh) following its reassignment to Justice Umar. Dangote Refinery had sued the Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA)…

EU Bloc Backs 90% Emissions Reduction Target by 2040 European Union countries have agreed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 90 per cent by 2040 compared to 1990 level, including the 5per cent achievable from international offsets. Danish Climate Minister, Lars Aagaard, said this on Wednesday. Aagaard said that under the plans, investments in countries outside the EU, such as extracting climate-damaging emissions from the atmosphere, could be converted into carbon credits and counted as domestic reductions. He said that the credit system would be rolled out from 2031 and fully in use by 2036, according to EU…

Nigerian Treasury Bills Yield Falls to 17.41% Ahead of Auction The average yield on Nigerian Treasury bills fell to 17.41% in the secondary market ahead of the midweek auction.  The average yield on Treasury bills continues to track below 18.02% inflation rate. Nigeria’s inflation rate is anticipated to improve with market guidance targeting at least a 50 basis point decline in the consumer price index. Consumers price stability will support the monetary policy committee to axe the benchmark interest rate. A further reduction in inflation figure will lift real interest rate above 9%. The market anticipate spot rates adjustment as…

FG to Invest N12bn in Digital Economy Research- Tijani The Federal Government on Tuesday said it would invest N12 billion to fund digital economy research projects to ensure the country benefits from digital transformation dividends. Dr Bosun Tijani, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, said this at the opening ceremony of the 18th edition of the International Conference on Theory and Practices of Electronic Governance (ICEGOV)in Abuja. The four-day programme has its theme as ‘ Shaping the Future of Digital Governance Through Cooperation, Innovation and Inclusion’ and it was organised by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA). Tijani said…

Arsenal Equal 122-Year Record With 3-0 Win Over Slavia Arsenal equalled a 122-year-old club record of eight successive games in all competitions without conceding a goal, sweeping past Slavia Prague 3-0 on Tuesday night. The win shot the Gunners to the top of the UEFA Champions League with four wins out of four. Mikel Merino, playing as a makeshift forward in place of injured striker Viktor Gyokeres, scored twice in the second half after England winger Bukayo Saka had put the Premier League leaders ahead in the 32nd minute. Arsenal, who introduced 15-year-old Max Dowman in the second half to…

Luis Enrique Blames PSG Defeat on ‘Big Gifts’ to Bayern Paris St. Germain coach Luis Enrique said his side handed Bayern Munich “big gifts” in their 2-1 Champions League defeat on Tuesday but refused to use injuries as an excuse. PSG were overwhelmed in the first half, falling 2-0 behind after a Luis Díaz double before the Colombian winger was sent off for a dangerous tackle on Achraf Hakimi. The Moroccan defender was substituted before the break, joining Ousmane Dembélé, who had already left the pitch injured. “We’ll have to wait until tomorrow after the tests,” Luis Enrique told a…

FG Strategises to Meet 1.6bn Litres Demand of Milk Annually The Federal Government has expressed its commitment to boost the current 700 milion litres annual milk production to the 1.6 billion litres requirement of the country. The Minister of Livestock Development, Idi Maiha, gave the assurance at the on-going workshop on the “Final Review and Validation of Framework for the Implementation of the National Dairy Policy” on Wednesday in Abuja. Maiha said that the country had sufficient livestock resources to meet domestic milk demand if properly harnessed. According to him, the nation’s dependence on imported dairy products is unsustainable and…

Allegation of Genocidal Attacks Against Nigerian Christians False – ECOWAS The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has said that reports of alleged terrorist attacks targeting the Christians in Nigeria, are false. The commission, which made this known in a statement, noted that terrorists usually target innocent civilians of all religious denominations, including Muslims, Christians, and adherents to other religions. ECOWAS’ statement follows recent remarks by U.S. President Donald Trump, citing alleged genocidal killings against Christians in Nigeria. ECOWAS, therefore, urged the United Nations and the entire international community to treat as false any claims that terrorist groups target…

U.S. Government Shutdown Longest in U.S. History The ongoing U.S government shutdown has become the longest in U.S history, reaching its 36th day on Wednesday as Congress remains without an approved federal budget. Previously, the longest government shutdown in U.S. history had occurred during President Donald Trump’s first term in office, leaving many federal operations largely halted for more than five weeks over the 2018–2019 year-end periods. How long the shutdown will last depends on whether both sides can reach a deal. The Senate is expected to hold further votes today, while the House of Representatives, the other chamber of…

Banks Step Up Placement with CBN as Excess Liquidity Hits N4.6trn Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) sought to boost earnings with increased placements with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Standing Deposit Facility. Amidst rising asset quality risks in the banking segment, commercial lenders are sticking to short term interest yielding naira assets in the money market. Banks placement at the deposit facility of the CBN rose by 2.67% to N3 trillion on Tuesday, according to TrustBanc Financial Group Limited, with system liquidity rising to N4.59 trillion. The surplus liquidity affected money market rates which moved in different direction as additional…