Nigerian naira down 10 pct yr/yr, stocks fall 17 pct

The Nigerian naira closed little changed against the dollar on both the parallel and interbank market on Thursday, while the stock index rose and the interbank rate remained at 1 percent for overnight lending. The local currency closed on the interbank market at 199.50 to the dollar on Thursday, compared with 181.50 to the dollar a year ago, down 9.91 percent at the official window. On the parallel market, the naira traded at 266 to the dollar, weaker by 39.26 percent from 191 to the dollar at the close last year. The stock market rose 3.11 percent...

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Nigeria's forex reserves decline 15.61 pct to $29.13 bln yr/yr by Dec 29

Nigeria's foreign exchange reserves declined by 15.61 percent year-on-year to $29.13 billion by Dec. 29, from $34.52 billion a year ago, data from the central bank showed on Thursday.The forex reserves of Africa's biggest economy and top crude exporter also dropped by 2.6 percent in one month from $29.91 billion a month earlier.The forex reserves fell to their lowest since July 1, 2015 when they stood at $29.07 billion because the central bank has been using the reserves to support the ailing naira currency in the wake of falling global oil pr...

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How MTN, Erricsion help pro Biafra to spread campaign on radio

Nigeria said the transmitters for Radio Biafra, which has been accused of spreading secessionist agenda and campaigning for the carving out of a Biafra Republic from Nigeria, were found to be installed on MTN masts in Enugu and Anambra states.In a court paper filed by the anti-graft agency against the the director of the illegal radio, the installation of the transmitters on the telecommunications company’s masts was to ensure wider coverage for...

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Nigerian naira firms on unofficial market after cbank dollar sales

The Nigerian naira firmed to 266 to the dollar on the unofficial market on Wednesday, gaining 1.5 percent after the central bank sold dollars to exchange houses and as demand for the U.S. currency slowed, traders said.The central bank sold $10,000 to each of more than 2,000 bureau de change operators, Aminu Gwadabe, the head of Nigeria's bureaux de change association, told Reuters.He said the intervention would be the last for the year.The naira fell to a record low of 280 to the dollar last week after the central bank advised commercial banks...

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Nigerian interbank rate eases on liquidity boost

Nigeria's overnight lending rate eased marginally to 0.75 percent on Wednesday from 1 percent in the last five weeks after the central bank refunded cash set aside by banks to buy dollars.Traders said the impact of the refund and anticipated injection of additional cash from November budgetary allocations to states and local government also helped to reduce cost of borrowing among banks.However, the secured open buy-back (OBB) -- the rate at which lenders can borrow from the interbank market using treasury bills as collateral -- held flat at 0.5...

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Nigeria retains pump price of gasoline at 87 naira, to borrow 1.84 trl naira

Nigerian President Muhammdu Buhari presented the 2016 budget before the national assembly on Tuesday, saying the pump price of petrol will remain at 87 naira per liter for the main time and assuring his determination to fight corruption. President Buhari President Buhari said he is expects a budget deficit of around 2.2 trillion naira in 2016 which would be funded by local and foreign borrowing, According to him, the budget expenditure of 6.08...

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Nigeria's trade balance weakens as oil prices, currency controls bite

Nigerian exports plunged in the third quarter from a year ago and imports also fell, the national bureau of statistics (NBS) said, as currency controls introduced by the central bank this year to support the economy start to bite.The balance of trade in the third quarter was 645 billion naira, down from 2.87 trillion naira in the third quarter a year ago ($14.42 billion - $3.24 billion).Africa's biggest economy relies on oil exports for about 58 percent of government revenue. But the price of crude has been falling, reaching its lowest in more...

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Nigeria stocks down to 3-year low, tracks global market

Nigerian stocks hit a three-year low on Friday, tracking a fall in global markets as investors digested the impact of this week's U.S. rate hike. The stock market, which has the second-biggest weighting after Kuwait on the MSCI frontier market index, shed 1.54 percent at the close, dropping to levels last reached in December 2012. The index fell to 26,537 points. Dada, Anchoria Investment boss Investors turned cautious on Friday about what a...

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In spite deep liquidity, Nigerian interbank rate stays flat

Nigeria's overnight lending rate held steady at 1 percent for the fifth consecutive week on Friday, despite lower money market liquidity as the central bank mopped up excess cash from the banking system, traders said.One dealer said the central bank had sold about 230 billion naira of Treasury bills in open market operations (OMO) in an apparent move to reduce liquidity in the system. That "prompted initial spike in the (overnight) rate, but it later stabilised at the 1 percent level", he added.Traders said market liquidity dropped to around 400...

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Dutch ruling on Nigeria could prompt more environmental cases

Shell ordered to provide documents on cause of spillsShell disappointed court assumes international jurisdictionNetherlands may be used for cases against Dutch companies abroadCourt has not yet ruled on Shell parent company liabilityA Dutch appeals court ruled on Friday that Royal Dutch Shell may be held liable for oil spills at its subsidiary in Nigeria, potentially opening the way for other compensation claims against multinationals in the Niger Delta and elsewhere.The ruling was hailed by rights groups as a victory for victims of environmental...

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Nigeria's NNPC awards new crude for product swap deals to four refiners

> New swaps will begin in February> NNPC to create new framework for product imports> Says no need to budget money for fuel subsidies in 2016Nigerian state oil firm NNPC will award new crude for product swap agreements to Total, Varo Energy, Cepsa and ENI, the head of its crude marketing unit said on Friday.The deals, which are expected to begin in February, differ from the former "offshore processing" agreements as they are directly with...

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Nigeria Sterling Bank says open to merger to build scale

Nigeria's Sterling Bank is open to merger or acquisition talks to build scale to counter weak market conditions caused by slow economic growth this year which could continue into 2016, its chief executive said. Yemi Adeola Africa's biggest economy relies on oil exports for about 58 percent of government revenue and faces its worst economic crisis in years because of the fall in crude prices, which tumbled to their lowest in more than six years...

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MTN Cameroon launches 4G mobile network in major cities

MTN Cameroon, one of the central African country's main cell phone providers, has announced the launch of a 4G mobile network, which the company said would help boost Cameroon's economy and access to basic services.MTN Cameroon says it has nearly 10.4 million subscribers out of a population of about 22.8 million. "The 4G of MTN Cameroon is an evolution," Linda Kouam, MTN's chief marketing officer, told journalists on Thursday. "Cameroon's economic growth will change. It's access to education for millions of young people; it's access to healthcare,...

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Nigeria's Sterling Bank plans $177 mln capital boost to increase lending

Nigeria's Sterling Bank plans to raise 35 billion naira ($177 million) in so-called Tier II capital between January and February to expand its loan book next year but sees no need to tap equity markets, it said on Thursday."We are pursuing Tier II capital, we are at the end of it and hopefully between January to February we would have additional debt capital," the mid-tier lender's chief executive, Yemi Adeola, told reporters in Lagos.Adeola said he saw no need to raise fresh equity capital, adding that the commercial lender had 90 billion naira...

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Nigeria raises 155 bln naira in bill sale at lower yields

Nigeria sold 155 billion naira  in Treasury bills with maturities from three months to one year at an auction on Wednesday, at lower yields than at previous auctions, the central bank said on Friday.The result of the auction showed that the bank sold 60 billion naira worth of three-month paper at 4 percent, down from 5.61 percent at a sale on Dec. 2.It also sold 25 billion naira worth of six-month debt at 6.17 percent against 7 percent previously, and 70 billion naira of one-year paper sold at 7.45 percent compared with 8 percent.Total demand...

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Naira at new lows on unofficial market as banks cut dollar limit

Nigeria's naira fell to a new range of between 274 to 280 in volatile dollar trades on the unofficial market on Thursday, after local lenders cut the amount individuals traveling abroad can spend on their bank cards, traders said.The naira has been hitting new lows among retail bureaux de change operators on renewed drop in oil prices and central bank's efforts to curb demand to conserve its dwindling foreign reserves. The currency closed at a low of 270 naira on Wednesday.Commercial banks in Africa's biggest economy this week cut the amount individuals...

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Naira at new low on unofficial market, cenbank rations dollars

Nigeria's naira fell 1.5 percent to a new low of 265 to the dollar on the unofficial market on Wednesday after the central bank rationed dollar supplies this week, traders said.The bank cut the amount it sold to each of the 2,270 retail money exchange brokers that participated in Wednesday's weekly sale to $10,000, down from the $30,000 each it sold last week, Aminu Gwadabe, the head of Nigeria's bureaux de change association told Reute...

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Nigeria's Egbin Power plans to double generating capacity - CEO

Egbin to spend $1.8 bln to double capacityGas, transmission network major drawbacksPower cuts to remain as new projects spur demandNigeria's biggest power company Egbin Power Plc plans to double its generation capacity to 2,640 megawatts (MW) over the next three to four years at a cost of $1.8 billion to tap growing demand, its chief executive said.CEO Dallas Peavey said the utility company, operated by state-run Korea Electric Power Corp (Kepco),...

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Etisalat Benin unit ordered to pay $451 mln in damages

An African subsidiary of Etisalat has been ordered to pay 413 million euros ($450.9 million) in damages to a minority shareholder in Telecel Benin, the Abu Dhabi-listed telecom operator said on Wednesday.Atlantique Telecom, which is also a shareholder in Telecel Benin, must pay the amount to SARCI, a statement to Abu Dhabi's bourse said, adding Atlantique would seek to have the award cancelled.SARCI has sought damages relating to the period 2002-2007, taking its claim to arbitration, the statement said without elaborating.A decision is pending...

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Nigeria interbank rate stays flat on ample liquidity

Nigeria's overnight lending rate held steady at 1 percent for the fourth consecutive week on Friday, as the money market remained sufficiently liquid, traders said."The market has been trading flat because of huge liquidity in the banking system without any major cash outflow from the market," one dealer said.Nigeria's central bank last month slashed its benchmark interest rate to 11 percent from 13 percent to stimulate growth through lending to producers, but many banks are not lending due to an increased risk of default by borrowers.Dealers said...

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Nigeria to raise 1.2 trl naira T-bills in Q1 2016

Nigeria's plans to raise 1.22 trillion naira ($6.13 billion) from treasury bills in the first quarter of 2016, the central bank said on Friday.The bank said it would auction 245.77 billion naira worth of 91-day bills and 238.51 billion naira worth of 182-day paper between Dec. 17 this year and March 3, 2016.It will raise 735.54 billion naira worth of 364-day treasury bills in the same first quarter of next year.Nigeria, Africa's biggest economy, issues treasury bills regularly as part of monetary control measures to help lenders manage their liquidity...

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Nigeria tightens rules for retail bureaux de change, naira falls

Nigeria's central bank on Friday revised the rules for operating retail bureaux de change in a bid to tighten regulation to curb speculation the long slide in oil prices hits its dollar reserves and currency.The circular, which will come into effect in January in Africa's biggest economy, orders retail money exchanges to deposit a mandatory cautionary deposit of 35 million naira in an account with the central bank, in addition to a minimum capital requirement of 35 million naira.The naira was trading at a new low of 260 to the dollar among most...

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Nigerian naira weakens 0.59 pct on dollar shortage

Nigeria's naira weakened further in the parallel market on Thursday, down 0.59 percent after the central bank's exclusion of some bureaux de change operators from its dollar sale on Wednesday created a shortage of dollars.The local currency was quoted at an unofficial 253 to the dollar, down from 251.5 at the previous day's close.The local currency was trading at 198.97 to the dollar on the official interbank market at 1117 GMT, close to a rate at which it has been pegged since February.The central bank had sold $30.5 million to 1,017 bureaux de...

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OPEC says cheap oil to hit rival supply harder in 2016

OPEC forecast on Thursday that oil supply from non-member countries will fall more sharply next year, a development that would suggest its strategy reaffirmed last week of defending market share not prices is working.The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries said in a report that supply outside OPEC would decline by 380,000 barrels per day (bpd) in 2016, as output falls in regions such as the United States and former Soviet Union. Last...

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Fitch expects Nigerian naira devaluation, warns on budget

Ratings agency Fitch expects a devaluation of Nigeria's naira currency in the first half of 2016, and warned that the country's expansionary budget was potentially negative for its credit rating."We see the central bank trying to do three things at once – (have an) active interest rate policy, trying to stop the flow of hard currency (out of the country) and defend the naira,” said Jermaine Leonard, a sovereign analyst at Fitch."The most likely place to let give is probably the currency," he said, adding he expected to see this happen in the first...

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South African markets slide after Zuma sacks finance minister

South Africa's rand edged towards a record low and stocks opened weaker on Thursday, a day after President Jacob Zuma removed Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene and replaced him with a relatively unknown member of parliament.Stocks opened 0.35 percent lower at 44,669 points on South Africa's blue-chip Top-40 indexBy 0714 GMT the rand had weakened 0.37 percent to 15.03 per dollar compared to its close of 14.9750 in New York.Nene's dismissal sent the rand to a record low of 15.30 on Wednesday as sentiment soured in an economy that is barely growing,...

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Nigeria raises 50 bln naira 2020, 2024 bond at higher yields

Nigeria sold 50 billion naira ($251.93 million) worth of naira-denominated bonds maturing in 2020 and 2024 at an auction on Wednesday, at higher yields thanks its previous auction, the Debt Management Office said on Thursday. The debt office issued 30 billion naira in the 2020 debt at 10.95 percent, up from 10.24 percent at the previous auction in November. The same tenor bond closed at 10.80 percent at the secondary market on Wednesday. A total of 20 billion of the benchmark bond maturing in 2024 was issued at 11 percent compared with 10.01...

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IFC, Alten boost renewable energy supply in Nigeria

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, has signed a Joint Development Agreement with Alten’s Middle Band Solar One Limited, a Nigerian solar power project company, to co-develop a 120 Mega Watt peak photovoltaic solar power project with a consortium of developers.  The project is expected to provide renewable energy supply to about 175,000 people and nearby industrial clusters, support job creation, and boost economic growth in the country. The project is based in Lokoja, Kogi...

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Nigeria stocks hit 3-year low as oil prices tumble, naira, fx reserves fall

Nigerian stocks shed 2.4 percent to hit a new three-year low on Wednesday after global oil prices tumbled to their lowest in more than six years.The stock market , which has the second-biggest weighting after Kuwait on the MSCI frontier market index, fell for the second day on thin volumes to levels not seen since December 2012.The bourse, which is down 20.6 percent year-to-date, broke below the psychologically key 27,000 point line on Wednesday. Banking shares fell the most, down 3.1 percent as investors sold off relatively liquid financial stocks.On...

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Ghana Nov consumer inflation rose to 17.6 pct yr/yr -stats office

Ghana's annual consumer price inflation rose to 17.6 percent in November from 17.4 percent the month before, the statistics office said on Wednesday. The figure is an indication of the economic problems faced by the West African nation, which is following a three-year aid programme with the International Monetary Fund in an attempt to restore fiscal balance. Food inflation inched up to 7.9 pct from 7.8 in October while non-food inflation was 23.2 percent compared to 23.0 percent the previous month, said deputy government statistician Baah Wadieh. "Non-food...

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Nigeria says China is strategic partner in changing content of governance

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has said that China remains a strategic and dependable partner in his administration's determination to change the direction and content of governance.Buhari in a statement by presidential spokesman Femi Adesina said the partnership includes the management of Nigeria's resources with priority on accountability, transparency and result-orientation in governance.Adesina quoted Buhari as saying this yesterday in South Africa in his address at the round-table of Chinese and African leaders at the conclusion of the...

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Nigerian interbank rate flat as mkt liquidity rises

Nigeria's overnight lending rate remained flat at 1 percent for a third consecutive week on Friday, as money market liquidity rose to over one trillion naira ($5.05 billion) after budgetary disbursal to government agencies, traders said.Nigeria, Africa's biggest economy, disburses revenue from crude exports among its three tiers of government - federal, states and local - on a monthly basis and a portion of state and local government funds passes through the banking system.Dealers said over 221 billion naira belonging to state and local governments...

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China to support African development with $60 bln

China's President Xi Jinping told African presidents on Friday at a summit that his country would provide $60 billion over three years to fund development on the continent.Xi, who is co-chairing the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation where several African heads of state were attending, outlined a broad ten-point development plan driven by the Asian economic giant, saying he wanted to build a relationship of equals."To ensure the successful implementation of these ten cooperation plans, China decides to provide a total of $60 billion of funding support,"...

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Nigeria sells 129 bln naira in Treasury bills, yields mixed

Nigeria raised 129.17 billion naira ($649.10 million) in Treasury bills with maturities from three months to a year at an auction on Wednesday, with mixed yields compared to returns at previous auctions, the central bank said on Friday.The result of the auction showed that the bank sold 57.85 billion naira worth of three-month paper at 5.61 percent, up from 5.34 percent at the Nov. 18 auction.It also sold 18 billion naira worth of six-month debt at 7 percent against 7.2 percent previously, and 53.32 billion naira of one-year paper sold at 8 percent...

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Paris climate deal to start green development charge-UNDP

A United Nations (UN) deal on climate change in Paris should fire the starting gun for a global push on sustainable development in 2016, with no time to lose in shifting to greener, more resilient economies, the head of the U.N. development agency said.Together with an international accord on reducing disaster risk in March and September's adoption of 17 new global goals, a comprehensive agenda will be in place for tackling global warming and eradicating poverty, said Helen Clark, administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)."This...

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Nigeria naira falls on unofficial market on limited dollar sales

Nigeria's naira fell 1.22 percent against the dollar on the unofficial market on Thursday after nearly half of bureaux de change operators failed to secure dollars at a central bank sale due to incomplete documentation, traders said.The currency was quoted at 246 against the dollar on the unofficial market, weaker than 243 the previous day. On the official interbank market the naira, which has been pegged against the greenback since February, traded at 198.97 by 1204 GMT.About 1,599 bureaux de change agents out of 2,818 operators were denied access...

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Nigeria slashes MTN fine by more than a third to $3.4 bln, CEO quits

NCC gives MTN until Dec. 31 to pay MTN says to talk to NCC before responding MTN shakes up management structure to boost governance Nigeria has cut a fine imposed on MTN Group by more than a third to $3.4 billion and given the South African mobile phone operator until the end of the year to pay it, the company said on Thursday. The Nigerian Communications Commission handed Africa's biggest mobile phone company the penalty in October after MTN failed...

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Oil falls on U.S. stockpiles, expected unchanged OPEC stance

Oil fell below $44 a barrel on Wednesday as a rise in U.S. inventories added to the global glut and investors discounted the possibility of OPEC cutting output at this week's meeting.Brent crude was down 53 cents at $43.91 a barrel by 1122 GMT, falling for a fifth consecutive session. It dropped as low as $43.75, its weakest level since Nov. 23, and was on track for its lowest close in two weeks. U.S. crude traded 50 cents down at $41.35 a barrel.Current...

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Nigeria to raise 50 bln naira in 2020, 2024 bonds

Nigeria plans to raise 50 billion naira in local currency denominated bonds maturing in February 2020 and March 2024 at its last debt auction of the year on Dec. 9, the Debt Management Office said on Wednesday.The debt office said it would sell 30 billion naira of the 2020 debt and 20 billion naira of the benchmark 2024 paper.The bonds are a reopening of previously issued paper. Results of the auction will be published the following day, the debt office said. The 2020 bonds closed with a yield of 11.73 percent on Wednesday and the 2024 at 11.85...

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Nigeria to understudy Australian mining sector – Fayemi

Fayemi Determined to drive the diversification of Nigeria’s economy through the a more structured and focused exploitation of the solid minerals, the Federal Government is understudying the Australian mining sector, which has made significant headway in that area, Kayode Fayemi, Minister of Solid Minerals Development has said.Fayemi says government will also be learning how the Australian government has been able to achieve synergy between communities,...

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Nigeria's Stanbic IBTC signs first international syndicated loan

Nigeria's unit of South Africa's Standard Bank Group, Stanbic IBTC Bank has secured its debut syndicated term loan facility in an amount of $103 million . The one-year transaction that was solely-led by Mashreqbank, psc as Coordinating Bank and Sole Bookrunner, was oversubscribed, Stanbic IBTC said in a statement. Nigeria's Cbank gov, Emefiele  Stanbic IBTC closed the syndication within six weeks of launch at a competitive pricing...

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Nigerian assembly passes $2.9 bln extra budget, mostly for gasoline

Nigeria's national assembly on Tuesday approved a supplementary budget for 2015 of 574.53 billion naira ($2.89 billion), mainly to cover fuel subsidies and ensure gasoline supplies across the vast country into the new year. NNPC station Despite being Africa's biggest oil producer, Nigeria imports almost all its gasoline needs because its refineries have been neglected for years. Fuel queues have been growing over the past weeks as importers found...

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Nigeria's Ecobank raise closes $170 mln loan

Nigeria's unit of Ecobank Transnational Incorporation (ETI) has signed a $170 million loan, marking only the second internationally syndicated loan this year for a Nigerian bank, as depressed oil prices bite into the country’s liquidity.  Standard Chartered acted as sole coordinator and documentation agent on the deal, which raised $20 million more than the borrower's inaugural $150 million October 2014 facility that it refinances.despite the adverse market conditions, Ecobank also managed to attract four new lenders into the syndicate group,...

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Nigeria naira firmer on unofficial market as c.bank tightens forex rules

The Nigerian naira strengthened 2.1 percent to 235 per dollar on the unofficial market on Thursday after the central bank moved to enforce documentation requirements on bureau de change operators prior to dollar sales, traders said. Dollars In a circular seen by Reuters on Thursday, the central bank asked all bureau de change (BDCs) operators to submit accounts showing their dollar usage at the start of each week before they can access future sales,...

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Oil falls as spotlight returns to glut, dollar up

Crude oil futures fell back towards $45 per barrel on Wednesday as the dollar gained and investor focus shifted back to a deep global supply glut.Brent was down 94 cents at $45.18 a barrel at 1241 GMT, having touched a low of $45.11. The benchmark hit its highest since Nov. 11 at $46.50 on Tuesday after Turkey shot down a Russian jet. It had risen for five consecutive days, its longest run of positive sessions since April.U.S. West Texas Intermediate...

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AfDB chief says Africa needs to manage budgets carefully

African countries will have to manage their finances carefully to repay dollar debt raised in recent years as weak currencies push up servicing costs and oil and commodity revenues tumble, the new head of the African Development Bank said. Adesina From oil-rich Nigeria and copper producing Zambia to fast-growing Rwanda and Ghana, African nations have taken advantage of historically low yields and strong investor appetite to issue Eurobonds or raise...

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