Markets

Naira

Naira depreciates to ₦382 against USD

The naira weakened to 382 per United States dollar on Friday, down from ₦379/dollar it closed on Thursday. On the back of sustained dollar injection by the Central Bank of Nigeria, the local currency had rebounded to 380/dollar on Wednesday after closing at ₦381/dollar on Monday and Tuesday. The central bank has continued to supply […]

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Nigeria disburses ₦7.3 billion for enterprise programme

The Nigerian Government has disbursed ₦7.301 billion for the Government Enterprises and Empowerment Programme (GEEP) out of the ₦41 billion so far released for funding of its social intervention programme under the 2016 budget. GEEP is a social intervention programme to stimulate bottom of the pyramid with credit. It targets market men and women, traders, artisans, […]

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CBN hq

External reserve drops to $30.5 billion as Naira gains

The nation’s external reserves continued its downward slide for the 20th day as it fell to $30.52 billion Thursday. However, the Naira yesterday appreciated by ₦3 against the dollar to ₦376 per dollar in the parallel market. Data posted by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on its website yesterday showed that the external reserve […]

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Nigeria to launch first green bond in few weeks: report

Nigeria plans to launch its delayed “green” bond – the first for an emerging market country – within a few weeks, the country’s former environment minister said. Amina Mohammed, now deputy secretary-general of the United Nations, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation proceeds from the sovereign bond – which is expected to raise about 20 billion […]

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Okonjo-Iweala: You can’t achieve growth with forex distortions

Former Finance Minister, Mrs Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has said growth and development would not be achieved when a country has distortions in its foreign exchange rates. Speaking at the launch of ‘Beating the Odds: Jumpstarting Developing Countries’, a book written by Justin Yifu Lin and Celestin Monga in Ahmedabad, India, Okonjo-Iweala said there was no one […]

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FG sets up National Minimum Wage Committee

The Federal Executive Council, FEC, has approved the constitution of a National Minimum Wage Committee to kick start the process of deliberations for a new wage for Nigerian workers. Briefing journalists at the end of the meeting presided over by Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, yesterday, the Minister of Labour and […]

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Bitcoin surges above $2,400 to all-time high

Digital currency bitcoin hit a fresh record high on Wednesday, surging above $2,400, as demand for crypto-assets soared with the creation of new tokens to raise funding for start-ups using blockchain technology. Blockchain, the underlying technology behind bitcoin, is a financial ledger maintained by a network of computers that can track the movement of any […]

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CBN hq

CBN will sell dollars to clear demand backlog of FX for airlines, others

The Nigeria Central Bank is planning to sell an undisclosed amount of dollars to settle a backlog of foreign exchange demand for airlines, fuel and raw material importers. Foreign exchange traders said the CBN had asked commercial banks to submit bids for dollars to cover the previously unmet demand for hard currency for specific sectors […]

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Osinbajo requests Reps’ approval for $1.28bn, €9m loans

Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, has requested approval of the House of Representatives for fresh $1.28bn and €9m loans under the 2016-2018 External Borrowing (Rolling) Plans of the Federal Government. A letter he wrote to the House of Representatives on the matter was read to members by the Speaker, Mr. Yakubu Dogara, on Tuesday in […]

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Godwin Emefiele

CBN retains MPR, interest rate at 14 per cent

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) yesterday kept its Monetary Policy Rate (MPR), its base interest rate, at 14 per cent. CBN Governor Godwin Emiefele, who spoke to reporters after the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting in Abuja, said the recession corridor would come to an end by the third quarter because of the positive […]

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Naira falls to ₦381 against USD despite CBN’s $205m injection

The naira depreciated slightly from 380 per United States dollar to ₦381/dollar on the parallel market on Monday. This came despite a $205m injection into the foreign exchange market by the Central Bank of Nigeria. In a statement on Monday, the CBN said ahead of the outcome of the Monetary Policy Committee meeting in Abuja, […]

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Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

SEC moves to ease process of issuing new shares

In a bid to eliminate some bottlenecks in the nation’s capital market, the Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, has commenced moves to ensure that the process of issuing new shares is completed within three to four weeks and at less cost to the issuers. The Director General of SEC, Mr. Mounir Gwarzo, revealed this to […]

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