Author: Marketforces Africa

Tax Reforms: Tinubu Won’t Undermine Democracy- Information Minister Amidst the uproar and controversy surrounding the tax reform bills the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, said that President Bola Tinubu’s decision was not to undermine democracy. Idris said this while giving an address at the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) 2024 Annual Public Lecture/AGM and Awards on Saturday in Kaduna. The event, organised by the state chapter of NIPR, had the theme “Tax Reform: The Role of Public Relations In Fostering Constructive Dialogue For National Economic Renaissance”. He said that worldwide, effective taxation was a source of…

Nigeria’s Foreign Reserves Increase by 22% in 11-Month Amidst reforms, Nigeria has seen a strong spike in foreign reserves over the last 11 months as investors’ confidence increased. Inflows from foreign investors and remittances from abroad keep gross balance in external reserves elevated, amidst series of oil-backed deals that reduced FX receipts from exports. By the end of November 2024, Nigeria’s reserves had appreciated by an impressive 21.90% year-on-year, climbing from $33 billion in November 2023 to $40.23 billion. Cowry Asset Limited said in a update. With an increase of about $7.23 billion, the current balance in the external reserves…

Access Holdings Surges as Investors Sentiment Improved Access Holdings Plc saw positive price movement that nudged the financial services group valuation near N890 billion.  The group is the lowest priced among tier-1 names in the banking sector, despite being the largest by total asset. In terms of market, Access Holdings Plc is value significantly below GTCO, and Zenith Bank in absolute terms and moderately behind UBA group and FBN Holdings. Analysts said the problem is that the market sees Access Plc as a bank rather than conglomerate with diversified earnings sources and capability. The Ticker: ACCESSCORP broke through its N24.00…

COVID-19: What Nigerians Need to Know About XEC Strain As the world continues to battle the constantly evolving COVID-19 pandemic, new variants of the virus are emerging, each presenting unique challenges. One such variant is the recently identified XEC strain, which has raised concerns due to its potential impact on global public health. The Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. COVID-19 can cause mild to severe respiratory illness, including death. The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. Since the beginning of the pandemic, there have been number of prominent…

Naira Gains Uninterruptedly, Settles at N1535 in FX Market The naira experienced an uninterrupted gains spanning five days due to efficient and transparent FX trading on the Bloomberg BMatch system. The local currency is more into the game of show of strength against the US dollar which has dominated key transactions even at the local level. Helped by strong forex inflows, and unbeatable trade transparency, exchange rate appreciated by about 8.23% or N138 week on week on BMatch system uninterruptedly. Even more, there is positive expectation that the local currency would continue to find value as the level of FX…

Dollar Mixed Ahead of U.S. Fed Appearances The US dollar was mixed against its major trading partners early Friday. The greenback surge versus the yen and Canadian dollar. However, US dollar was down against the euro and pound—before a busy data of economic data releases and appearances by Federal Reserve officials. Non-farm payrolls are expected to rise by 220,000 after a hurricane-impacted 12,000 jobs gain in October. The unemployment rate is expected to remain at 4.1%, and hourly earnings are forecast to rise by 0.3% after a 0.4% gain. A quick summary of foreign exchange activity heading into Friday showed…

BoI Secures $50m Loan to Boost Women-Owned Businesses The Bank of Industry (BoI) has secured a $50 million loan portfolio from the African Guarantee Fund (AGF). This is in a bid to empower women entrepreneurs and drive economic growth in Nigeria. This innovative guarantee framework agreement is backed by the African Development Bank’s (AfDB) Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) initiative. The loan, which will be disbursed over a 10-year period, is expected to significantly scale up BOI’s lending to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the country, with a focus on women-owned businesses and environmentally sustainable enterprises.…

Oil Prices Decline as Market Weigh OPEC+ Decision Oil prices dipped again in the global commodities market due to weak data from top consumers at the time the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries and allied producer members agreed to output extension. Brent price fell to $71.24 per barrel on Friday, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the American benchmark, declined to $67.38 a barrel at the same time. Weak economic data from both the US and China added further downward pressure. Also, OPEC+ confirmed that its 2 million barrels per day (bpd) production cut would be extended until December 31, 2026.…

The bitcoin price tanked strongly on Friday due to sell pressures from retail investors in the cryptocurrency market.

BUA Group has signed an agreement with Starlinger & Co. Limited of Austria in a strategic move to expand into the production of high-quality packaging materials.