Author: Ogochukwu Ndubuisi

Kano State Pension Board Clears N21bn out of N48.6bn Owed Pensions The Kano State Pension Board has so far cleared over N21 billion in pension liabilities out of a total debt of N48.6 billion inherited from the previous administrations in the state. The Executive Chairman of the Kano State pension fund trustees, Alhaji Habu Fagge. made this known while addressing newsmen in Kano. ”The state the board was at the time of the current administration’s takeover was “deeply troubling. ”Pensioners suffered irregular and arbitrary deductions under the previous government, sometimes losing half of their meager monthly entitlements. “At one point,…

Zenith Bank, UBA Surge after Dividend Markdown Zenith Bank, UBA, and other tier-1 banking names rallied in the equities market after their share prices were marked down for dividends, trading records obtained from the Nigerian Exchange revealed. The Nigerian top lenders in the trillion-naira valuation category saw a substantial price uptick in the local bourse as investors’ sentiment on dividend-paying stock boosted the banking index. As a result of this strong show, the Nigerian equities market closed in the green, with the All-Share Index (ASI) rising by 49 bps, bringing year-to-date gain to 1.76%. Investors began to take positions in…

Money Market Rates Fall over Liquidity Surplus in Banking System The liquidity surplus in the banking system dragged short-term benchmark interest rates lower sharply ahead of the treasury bills auction scheduled for Wednesday. Key money market indicators fell sharply in the absence of significant funding pressures, with a slowdown in borrowing activities at the standing lending facility of the Apex Bank. The financial system funding profile remained robust on Tuesday as N145 billion in bond coupon payments balanced out Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) FX settlement outflows. Banks borrowing activity remains low in the absence of significant funding pressures in…

Nigeria’s FX Reserves Drop by $3bn, Hit 6-Month Low Tracking below $38 billion, Nigeria’s foreign reserves declined by $3 billion in less than four full months amidst fluctuation in FX inflows and aggressive interventions in the currency markets. Latest data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed that foreign reserves fell below $37.888 billion, the lowest level seen in six months. The authority said the nation’s net foreign exchange position has inched higher to $23 billion, accounting for 60% of the aggregate amount. This suggests that there is only a 40% claim against the balance in the nation’s foreign…

BisonFly Takes Off: FG’s Initiative for Cost-Effective Air Travel The Federal Government has launched the BisonFly Project, a groundbreaking initiative designed to optimize air travel costs for the Federal Civil Service. By harnessing the power of technology and collective bargaining, BisonFly aims to reduce expenditure and improve service delivery across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs). With a centralized, technology-enabled system, BisonFly will integrate digital booking tools and platforms to ensure transparency and efficiency in official travel arrangements. According to Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, “Project BisonFly directly supports our commitment to prudent financial management.” This innovative project is a model…

Pharmaceutical Giant, Roche to Invest $50bn in U.S. Swiss pharmaceutical giant, Roche, on Tuesday said it would invest 50 billion dollars in the United States (U.S.) in the next five years. The Chief Executive of the pharmaceutical giant, Thomas Schinecker, made this known on Tuesday. Schinecker said that the commitment include new state-of-the art research and development sites as well as new and expanded manufacturing facilities in Indiana, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and California. He also said that the investments were expected to create more than 12,000 new jobs, including nearly 6,500 construction jobs, as well as 1,000 jobs at new and…

MAN Reviews H2′ 2024 Manufacturing Performance The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has reviewed the country’s manufacturing performance for the second half of 2024. Mr Segun Ajayi-Kadir, Director-General, MAN, made this known on Monday in Lagos in a report titled ” MAN Economic Review- Second Half 2024″. He said the focus manufacturing indicators included capacity utilisation, production value, inventory, local raw materials utilisation levels, investment, expenditure on alternative energy sources among others. Ajayi-Kadir noted that capacity utilisation of the manufacturing sector improved marginally to 57.0 per cent in 2024, up from 55.1 per cent in 2023. A half-on-half analysis showed…

Short-term Benchmark Interest Rates Soar as Liquidity Fluctuates The short-term benchmark interest rates rose as liquidity levels in the financial system fluctuated. Funding condition was robust at the beginning of the week, underpinned by sustained system liquidity and significant fiscal injections. The banking system opened with a net positive liquidity balance exceeding N130 billion, which was further buoyed by a N1.58 trillion disbursement from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC). This substantial inflow helped maintain an overall liquid posture in the system but could not hold the line till the week’s close. Despite these inflows, funding rates displayed a mixed…

Banking Index Slips as UBA, Zenith GTCO Trade Ex-Dividend The banking index declined sharply due to the market regulator’s decision to mark down top banking names—GTCO, Zenith Bank, and UBA Plc – share prices for dividend payments, though stockbrokers also noticed selloffs on some tickers. Top banking names were marked down for their 2024 dividend payment, causing share prices to decline, while stockbrokers also noticed some sell pressure on their respective market value. Trading records obtained from the Nigerian Exchange showed banking and insurance indices were the worst performers in the local bourse last week.  Reflecting dividend market down and…

CBN Reduces Nigerian Treasury Bills Offer after Under Allotment The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will open Treasury bills worth N400 billion for subscriptions at the midweek primary market auction. This amount is half of the previous auction sales that resulted in under allotment. The first auction sales in April conducted by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) issued a total of N800 billion, which was also higher than the N700 billion in the previous auction. Investor demand was softer compared to the previous auction, with total subscriptions declining by 21.23% to N1.13 trillion from N1.43 trillion at the prior…