Nigeria's central bank governor designate, Emefiele resumes work on Monday

Emefiele, CBN gov designate

Godwin Emefiele, Nigeria’s central bank governor designate is expected to formally assume duty at the headquarter of the regulator bank in Abuja on Monday. The resumption of Emefiele at the regulatory bank will mark the end of an era, especially the end of tenure of controversial erstwhile governor, Lamido Sanusi who was suspended by President Goodluck Jonathan in February in what many observers of the system said was attempt to thwart investigation into the allegation of missing $20 billion oil revenue.
Emefiele appointment was confirmed by the senate in March, but have to allow the tenure of Sanusi to expire by June 2, before assumption of office.
All eyes are on the man, especially giving the controversial manner his predecessor was thrown out of office and the geopolitical underplay in his appointment. Emefiele is from the Niger Delta, same region the president comes from.
Industry observers expect him to gird his loins for some drastic change in the industry. Against the backdrop of declining loan portfolio and inability of the financial sector to assist Small and Medium size businesses in terms of financing, Emefiele is expected to direct his energy on policies to redress this. Equally of importance is the need to ensure monetary policy stability and a safe and sound financial sector through constant monitoring of operators ensuring that the experience of 2009 does not repeat itself.
At his screening by the senate in March, Emefiele has vowed to resist attempt to devalue the nation’s currency, saying such will hurt the economy.
“We will ensure that during this period, if approved by the Senate, that whatever monetary policy decision we take will be those that will lead to improvement in the level of employment,” he said, warning the country was facing an “employment emergency”.
“Growing the economy of Nigeria is a very important assignment other than just a core mandate of ensuring that we have a stable environment.”

Sanusi, outgoing CBN governor

Many industry players are asking the new governor to sustain the reform embarked on by Sanusi irrespective of the manner he was sack from the job and ensure that only and focus more of macroeconomic stability, using best of monetary policy instrument to achieve that.
Although, prior to his appointment and confirmation, he has spend more than half a century in the banking industry, yet his view on major issues are not known beyond the fact that he rose to become the chief executive of Zenith bank after the exit of Jim Ovia.
Many believe that he may turn out to be a yes man to the president who appointed him considering the circumstance of his appointment, but he has his reputation to protect.
Already, market watchers are holding their breath in anticipation what policy direction the central bank will take in the next couple of days ahead.
The naira closed at 162.75 to the dollar at the interbank market on Friday and 155.73 at the official window. The naira has lost around 2.68 percent year-to-date at the interbank market and relatively stable at the official window. Interest rates on the interbank has also be stable all year due to liquidity tightening by the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC).

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Nigerian interbank rates rise on liquidity tightening

Adesola, Standard Chartered Ceo

Nigerian interbank lending rates rose this week to an average of 10.75 percent from 10.25 percent last week, as the central bank aggressively mopped up liquidity to curb inflation and speculation in the local currency.
"The central bank has consistently issued Open Market Operation (OMO) debt notes this week to soak liquidity from the banking system," one dealer said.
Traders said the bank issued about 170 billion naira ($1.05 billion) worth of OMO treasury bills to absorb excess cash in the banking system, driving up interest rates among banks.
The cash balance that lenders hold at the central bank fell to 348 billion naira surplus on Friday compared with 411 billion naira last week Friday.
The open buy-back (OBB) inched up to 10.50 percent from 10.25 percent last week, 1.5 percentage points below the central bank's benchmark rate of 12 percent.
Overnight placement rose to 10.75 percent against 10.25 percent last week. Call money increased to 11 percent from 10.25 percent previously.
"We expect more liquidity tightening next week with rates rising further," another trader said.
Nigeria plans to issue 137.97 billion naira worth of treasury bills on June 4 at maturities ranging from three months to one year, the central bank said on Wednesday. That is expected to further deplete cash in the banking system and push up of cost of lending among banks.

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Ghana names Barclays, StanChart and Deutsche Bank as Eurobond advisors

Ghana named Barclays Plc, Deutsche Bank and Standard Chartered Plc as transaction advisers for its 2014 Eurobond of up to $1.5 billion, the finance ministry said on Friday.
"Although the transaction team is expected to start work immediately on the preparatory activities, government will continue to monitor the market for a suitable execution window," said the statement by deputy finance minister Cassiel Ato Forson.

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Africa must tackle poverty to share benefits of strong growth-IMF's Lagarde

Africa is "taking off" with strong, steady growth but poverty is unacceptably high so that governments need to build infrastructure and institutions and educate people to share the benefits more widely, the IMF's head said on Thursday.
Sub-Saharan Africa is expected to grow by around 5.5 percent this year - well above the global average - with some of its poorest countries expanding by closer to 7 percent, Christine Lagarde, International Monetary Fund (IMF) managing director, told an IMF conference in the Mozambican capital Maputo.
But the IMF chief said although the region had become a growing investment destination for both advanced and emerging economies, with a record $80 billion of inflows expected this year, the economic benefits of the growth surge had yet to be widely distributed across the region's population.
"Poverty remains stuck at unacceptably high levels - still afflicting about 45 percent of the region's households," Lagarde told the meeting of African finance ministers and development experts.
Despite forecasts of continuing strong expansion for the region, its positive outlook has been darkened this year with flare-ups of conflict, insurgency and violence. This has ranged from civil war in the world's newest state, South Sudan, an insurgency waged by radical Islamist Boko Haram group in Africa's largest economy Nigeria and attacks by Islamist militants hurting tourism and business in Kenya.
As African countries tap new sources of funds through natural resource discoveries and international dollar bonds, questions have also arisen about how governments are managing this money in fast-growing economies like Ghana and Zambia.
Lagarde said that with the international recovery still looking weak and uneven, Africa's positive outlook also faced risks from slower growth in the world's advanced economies and in emerging markets, which are the region's main trade partners.
Other risks included lower prices for some commodities, tighter external financial conditions and market volatility.
The IMF head recommended three priorities to ensure the region's growth can be wide, inclusive and sustained: "Build infrastructure, build institutions, and build people."

INFRASTRUCTURE, JOBS
Lagarde said Africa still had big infrastructure gaps, which represented huge costs to businesses and to people.
She cited as an example the fact that over the past three decades, per capita output of electricity in Sub-Saharan Africa remained virtually flat. Only 16 percent of all roads were paved, compared with 58 percent in South Asia. The investment needs to address this in the region were estimated at about $93 billion annually, she said.
The IMF chief said Africa also needed to improve governance, transparency and create sound economic frameworks for growth - she called this "building institutions."
This would ensure that revenues and benefits from the continent's mineral riches - Africa has more than 30 percent of the world's mineral reserves - could be better captured for national budgets and generating more jobs.
Lagarde said Africa needed to "build people" to reap the dividends of its rapid population growth. She cited estimates that a one percentage point increase in the working age population could boost GDP growth by half a percentage point.
"For this to happen, however, 'good' jobs need to be created in the private sector. Today, only one in five people in Africa finds work in the formal sector," Lagarde said. "This must change. With wider access to quality education, healthcare and infrastructure services, it can change."
Technology could extend access to financial services to millions, and this was already happening in several countries, such as Kenya.
"Africa Rising will benefit the lives of people on the continent. Beyond that, Africa Rising will benefit the world," Lagarde said.

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Nigerian naira eases on dollar shortage

The Nigerian naira eased slightly against the U.S. currency on Wednesday, after dealers took positions in anticipation of dollar sales by oil companies which did not materialise.
The local unit closed at 162.80 to the greenback, after initially climbing to 162.40 naira, ending weaker than Tuesday's close of 162.72 naira.
Dealers had expected dollar sales from oil companies, which started last week to continue to support the naira, but they failed to appear.
Multinational oil companies in Africa's biggest economy sell dollars to banks on monthly basis in order to fund their local naira obligations. The naira is seen gaining to around 162 level next week as more oil firms sell dollars.

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Western Union expands global digital presence, launches in Nigeria

WUMT

The Western Union Company, a leader in global payment services, on Wednesday announced the launch of a new web site in Nigeria. The Nigeria launch represents the first receive-enabled Western Union web site, globally.
"Western Union is growing its network and increasing consumer access to our services worldwide," said Khalid Fellahi, senior vice president and general manager, Western Union Digital.
"The launch supports our global retail Agent network, and is part of Western Union`s multi-channel consumer experience, which is a differentiator in today`s money transfer marketplace."
Western Union service offerings deliver complementary digital and retail capabilities, and address evolving consumer preferences for international money transfers. For example, Western Union money transfer services allow the consumer to send funds to more than 500,000 retail Agent locations, into a mobile wallet,
or opt to direct the transfer into a recipient`s bank account.
In Nigeria, consumers can receive funds from 200 countries and territories at nearly 5,000 Western Union retail Agent locations in the country, or use www.WesternUnion.ng to direct the funds into a bank account with Guaranty Trust Bank, Skye Bank, Stanbic IBTC Bank and Wema Bank.
Online services in Nigeria were launched in cooperation with Interswitch Limited. Speaking to the Interswitch relationship, Mr. Fellahi added that, "Western Union will continue to explore opportunities that facilitate financial inclusion and increase speed to market for new money transfer services in key
regions around the world."
For more information on Western Union`s global capabilities, including online and mobile money transfer services, as well as retail Agent locations, please visit www.WesternUnion.com.

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MasterCard extends zero liability policy to ATM transactions

Master card

MasterCard Inc, the world's second largest debit and credit card company, said it was extending its zero liability policy in the United States to include all PIN-based and ATM transactions.
Zero liability protection means the account holder will not be held responsible for unauthorized transactions.
Earlier, the zero liability protection did not apply if an account holder's personal identification number (PIN) was used for unauthorized transactions.
Larger rival Visa Inc's zero liability policy does not apply to PIN-based and ATM transactions, according to information available on its website.
Visa was yet to respond to requests seeking comment.
U.S. cards issued by MasterCard will also carry Identity Theft Resolution assistance, which helps cancel missing cards, alert credit reporting agencies and conduct searches to detect if stolen confidential data appears online, MasterCard said on Wednesday.
The two companies have been pushing banks and retailers to adopt technology that would make it safer to pay with plastic in the wake of a series of high-profile data breaches.
Last week, eBay Inc became the latest victim of a cyber attack that compromised customer data and the company asked 145 million users of its online commerce platform to change their passwords.

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Nigeria to raise 138 bln naira in Treasury bills

Nigerian currency

Nigeria plans to issue 137.97 billion naira ($848.00 million) worth in treasury bills on June 4 with maturities ranging from three months to one year, the central bank said on Wednesday.
The bank said it would auction 22.97 billion naira worth in three-month treasury bills, 30 billion naira of six-month paper and 85 billion naira of the one-year debt note.
Auction results are expected the following day, the bank said in a statement.
Yields on Nigerian short-dated debt have progressively declined in the last two months due to rising demand for the debt notes by local pension and offshore investors.

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Kenya central bank shows ready to defend struggling shilling

Kenya Shilings

Kenya's central bank has signalled its intent to defend the ailing shilling by selling dollars and says it has deep enough foreign reserves to cushion the currency against shocks.
The shilling has been on the back foot this year, hurt by lower than expected dollar inflows into the tourism and tea sectors. More recently, a spate of bombings has added to worries that if a slump in tourism continues and deepens it could shave a percentage point or more off growth, economists say.
The Central Bank of Kenya has persistently drained liquidity to shore up the currency in 2014, but on Friday it acted more aggressively, selling an undisclosed amount of dollars. Two commercial banks on Monday confirmed the sale.
"(The bank) gave the message that they're willing to cap the shilling at these levels," said Nahashon Mungai, a trader at Kenya Commercial Bank.
On Friday the shilling fell through the psychologically important 88 per dollar barrier to its lowest in 2 1/2 years, before the bank's actions hauled it back. On Monday, banks priced the shilling at 87.85/95 at the market close, a touch weaker than Friday.
Central Bank of Kenya Governor Njuguna Ndung'u blamed seasonal pressures, including the payment of corporate dividends to foreign shareholders for volatility in the currency over the past two weeks. He made no mention of the slowdown in tourism, an important source of foreign exchange.
The governor said the current level of foreign exchange reserves of $6.24 billion, equivalent to 4.4 months of import cover, gave the bank sufficient muscle to tackle what he called "temporary shocks".
"(The bank) stands ready to provide further support to minimise the volatility of the exchange rate," Ndung'u said in a statement on Monday.
Proceeds from a planned debut Eurobond issue before the close of the fiscal year on June 30 would raise reserves higher still, and the shilling could appreciate, Ndung'u said.
SECURITY PROBLEMS
The central bank does not reveal the size of its hard currency sales or purchases. A second trader called Friday's sale a "sizeable amount" to move the currency by 30 cents.
"They hit all the banks with quite large amounts," said I&M bank trader Abhinav Mathur.
The prospect of further sales of hard currency meant investors were now reluctant to break the 88 level again, Mathur said.
Even so, both traders forecast the shilling could weaken further this week as routine end-month dollar demand from corporate clients kicked in and with the government widely seen to be struggling to contain militant attacks.
The Somali Islamist militant group al Shabaab said last week it was "shifting its war" onto Kenyan soil. Tourists have left in droves, and travel agencies report cancellations following travel warnings by Britain, the United States and others.
"It does help to see that the central bank is willing to intervene and intervene in a strong manner," said Mungai. "But security concerns and (dollar) demand will keep the shilling on the back foot."
In January, the Kenyan Treasury estimated the economy, the biggest in East Africa, would expand by 5.8 percent this year, after a 4.7 percent expansion last year. But the government delayed announcing its official forecast last month, saying it needed more time for consultations.
The shilling is expected to trade in a range of 87.80 and 88.20 in the coming sessions.
The central bank governor's comments had little impact on Nairobi's stock market, where the benchmark NSE-20 Share Index  closed down 0.5 percent on Monday at 4,899.92 points.

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Etisalat given $500 mln grant by Abu Dhabi for Maroc Telecom deal

Add caption

Abu Dhabi gave Etisalat a $500 million grant towards its 4.14 billion euro ($5.64 billion) purchase of 53 percent of Maroc Telecom, the company's prospectus for a planned bond issue shows.
The grant provides further evidence of the emirate's support for its companies' foreign expansion and could attract complaints from rival operators.
Fellow Abu Dhabi-based company Etihad Airways benefited from a $3 billion interest-free loan from the emirate's ruling family, the Australian Financial Review newspaper said last week, leading to complaints from rival airlines about state subsidies distorting competition.
The grant was mentioned in the prospectus for a bond issue to help to repay some of the debt taken on to complete the Maroc Telecom transaction.
"In connection with the acquisition, the group received an amount of $500 million as a grant from an entity owned by the government of Abu Dhabi," the document stated.
Etisalat could start marketing the bond as early as next week, having chosen four banks to arrange the issue, four banking sources said.
It chose Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, HSBC and Royal Bank of Scotland to arrange the deal, the sources said.
Etisalat did not respond immediately to a request for comment.

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Nigerian naira trades flat against U.S.dollar

Naira & dollar

Nigeria's naira traded flat against the U.S currency on Monday, as dollar sales by two oil companies helped ease the pressure of demand for the greenback, dealers said.
The local unit closed at 162.45 naira to the dollar.
The Nigerian units of Chevron sold $43 million to lenders and Royal Dutch Shell sold an undisclosed amount, boosting dollar liquidity in the interbank forex market.
"We expect the naira to trade within present levels or appreciate as more oil companies sell part of their month-end dollars," one dealer said.
Traders said the naira traded calmly before the oil company dollar sales, which helped stabilise demand for the greenback.
The naira has been hovering between 161-162 over the last two weeks, as oil companies bought naira to meet local obligations and as foreign investors bought domestic debt.

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Visa pushes for more access to barely-tapped Ethiopia

Visa Card

Visa Inc., which is piloting Ethiopia's first international debit card, is seeking to persuade the government to ease tight restrictions on banks in an effort to boost the use of electronic payments.
Ethiopia has one of Africa's fastest-growing economies but few people in the Horn of Africa nation of 90 million have bank accounts and the range of services is limited.
The government bars foreign banks, saying it needs to protect domestic lenders, and local debit cards have until now not worked abroad.
Jabu Basopo, Visa's manager for southern and east Africa, said the focus was on persuading leaders of the $43 billion economy that is dominated by state enterprise about the benefits of electronic payments.
"They are willing to try some things," said Basopo. "They have agreed to a pilot for international cards. It is a very controlled environment."
Users of Visa's international card, which is being trialled by government officials, will be restricted to spending an amount that has been pre-loaded on the card. Visa said the government was pleased with the trial so far.
Basopo said local banks lacked muscle to push the central bank to drive change in an industry where the largest commercial lender is run by the state and holds two-thirds of all deposits.
He pointed to Rwanda as an example of where business-friendly reforms to liberalise banking regulations in the past four years had led to a swift deepening of the market.
"Rwanda was in a similar situation. (Now) every bank is listed to Visa. All the ATMs in the country are linked to Visa ... and we've seen a lot of growth in terms of retailers actually accepting Visa cards now," Basopo said.
Retail transactions in Ethiopia are primarily made in cash. Retailers say a scarcity of debit cards hinders growth in the retail sector, which is also off-limits to foreign chains. [ID:L6N0O81SL]
"If you look at the main efficiencies brought by electronic payments ... more money stays in the banks and the banks are able to lend that money back to retailers to do more business," Basopo said.
Visa, the world's largest credit and debit card company which counts 10 Ethiopian banks as members, first entered the country in 2004.
The International Monetary Fund has warned that Ethiopia's huge public spending on roads, railways and power is suffocating private lending. It says Ethiopia should row back on public spending to allow the private sector greater access to credit.

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Nigeria interbank rates slide as central bank retires treasury bills

Nigerian interbank lending rates fell to an average of 10.25 percent this week, compared with 12.41 percent last week, as the central bank kept its benchmark rate unchanged but paid off matured treasury bills, boosting liquidity.
The central bank kept its policy rate on hold at 12 percent for the 16th time in a row on Tuesday, as it sought to maintain a stable currency and historically low inflation in the face of "eroded fiscal buffers".
The bank sold 397 billion Nigerian naira ($2.5 billion) worth of open market securities (OMO) on Thursday to mop up liquidity, the same day it paid off 230 billion naira worth of matured treasury bills, cancelling the effect of the mop up, dealers said.
"We don't expect much change in the market next week unless central bank decides to sell more OMO bills," one dealer said.
Cash balance that lenders hold at the central bank was 411 billion naira on Friday, compared with 350 billion naira a week ago.
The open buy back (OBB) was flat at 10.25 percent, 1.75 percentage points below the central bank's benchmark rate of 12 percent. Overnight placement and call money each fell to 10.25 percent, against 12.50 percent each last week.

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Cameroon cocoa exports reach 146,417 T by end-April

Cocoa pods 

Cameroon had exported 146,417 tonnes of cocoa beans by end-April since the start of the 2013/14 season in August, down from 199,147 tonnes during the same period the previous season, according to National Cocoa and Coffee Board (NCCB) data.
The world's fifth largest cocoa producer shipped 3,043 tonnes of beans in April, down from 3,207 tonnes in March and 5,849 tonnes in the same month a year ago, the data showed.
The NCCB said 10 companies exported beans in April, up from seven in March. Producam topped the list with 1,003 tonnes, followed by Olam Cam with 860 tonnes, and Ets Ndongo Essomba with 301 tonnes.
For the second consecutive month, Sic-Cacaos and Chocolaterie Confiserie du Cameroun (CHOCOCAM) made no purchases.
Cameroon's cocoa season runs from Aug. 1 to July 31, with the main crop harvest period from October to January/February and the light crop harvest from April/May to July.
The crop is grown mainly in four regions, with the centre and southwest each accounting for 40 percent of national output, the south 15 percent and the east 5 percent. Cultivation is also extending gradually to the northwest and west.
National output hit a record of 240,000 tonnes in the 2010/11 season before dropping to 220,000 tonnes in 2011/12 due to attacks by pests and diseases and a prolonged dry season. It rose to 228,948 tonnes in 2012/13.

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