Nigeria’s central bank pioneers a new method to shore up the local currency

By the Economist YOU might think Godwin Emefiele, the governor of Nigeria’s central bank, had problems enough. The collapsing oil price has slashed Nigeria’s export earnings. Foreign reserves have fallen from more than $40 billion early last year to just over $30 billion now. In response Mr Emefiele (pictured) devalued the local currency, the naira, in November and again in February. The devaluations are stoking inflation. Like many other central...

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Nigerian naira weakens 2.3 pct against dollar on black market

The Nigerian naira weakened against the dollar on Monday on the parallel market after a boost in liquidity and a surge in demand for dollars, traders said.The naira was trading at 218 to the dollar in the bureau de change market, 2.34 percent weaker than the 213 it closed at on Friday."There is an upsurge in demand for the dollar due to increase in liquidity in the system, with some buyers willing to pick up dollars at any available rate," Aminu Gwadabe, president of Bureau de change operators said.The naira hovered between 208-210 to the dollar...

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Plenty of activity in the absence of ministers -Gregory Kronsten

A common criticism of the Buhari presidency from portfolio investors is that the president will not appoint the federal executive council (FEC) of ministers until next month. The argument might have some merit but should not be expanded to give the impression that there are no reasons for the delay.We recall that after the polls in 2011, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala did not take up her post as coordinating minister of the economy until August. The new governor...

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Bank stock collapse may hit capital raising ability

Many Nigerian commercial lenders may find it tough raising fresh capital this year as both offshore and local investors dump shares of banks listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). Most of the lenders are already positioning to raise Tier-1 capital to beef-up their operations and increase shares of the market. However, the down turn in the capital market caused by falling global oil prices, weak local currency and exit of offshore investors...

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Nigerian interbank rates ease on budget, T-bills cash inflows

Nigeria's interbank lending rates fell sharply to 8.25 percent on average this week from 40 percent last week after budgetary allocations to government agencies on Thursday raised liquidity levels in the money market. Emefiele, CBN governor The cost of funds among commercial lenders rose sharply in the week to over 100 percent as state-owned energy firm NNPC recalled cash and commercial lenders scrambled to cover about 136 billion in short naira...

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Payments glitch at HSBC leaves thousands of Britons without wages

• Bank says 275,000 payments were affected• Britons out of pocket ahead of holiday• Problems affected payments through UK BACS serviceThousands of Britons failed to receive their wages on Friday when a problem at Europe's biggest bank HSBC prevented some of its business customers from making payments.The glitch affected payments made by HSBC's business customers through Britain's BACS system, which processes electronic payments. One of HSBC branches "There...

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Nigerian bonds yields seen climbing

Nigeria's bond yields are seen climbing on tight liquidity in the money market and a sell-off by offshore investors, partly deterred by slowing economic growth.Yields on all tenors have risen on the back of a sell-off by mostly offshore investors and commercial lenders covering short naira positions as the central bank has sought to support the local currency.The central bank directed commercial lenders this month to pay for dollar purchases 48 hours in advance in a move aimed at curbing foreign exchange demand.Traders said weak economic output...

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Fitch: Nigerian Banks resilient but face tough outlook

Nigerian banks are operating in increasingly difficult conditions and this is likely to result in a sharp deterioration in profitability, asset quality, liquidity and capital ratios, says Fitch Ratings. We said the sector outlook was negative in December. GDP figures for 2Q15, released yesterday, show weaker year-on-year growth of 2.4 percent, down from 4 percent in the previous quarter, the slowest quarterly growth rate for over 10 years. Emefiele,...

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U.S. says regional trade pacts to curb poaching in Africa

Measures to counter the trafficking of wildlife in a proposed Pacific trade pact should help to discourage animal poaching in Africa, a senior U.S. official said on Wednesday.Speaking at a conference in Gabon on a U.S.-Africa trade pact, U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman said the proposed 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership would include measures to curb demand from Asia for trafficked wildlife from Africa. Froman also said he was sure that a deal on the Trans-Pacific Partnership - a cornerstone of President Barack Obama's diplomatic pivot...

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Nigeria's bourse inducts Dangote Cement, First Bank, Zenith to new premium board​

 The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has launched a new listing platform - the Premium Board and the associated Premium Board Index, in its bid to promote Africa’s biggest companies, as well as influencing the economic growth and development of Africa's biggest economy. In a statement by the exchange, the Board will feature companies that meet the Exchange’s most stringent listing criteria of capitalization, governance and liquidity....

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Nigeria's Diamond Bank Introduces Magic Cash

Diamond Bank is set to excite its customers with Magic Cash, another value-added service that will give account holders access to its Automated Teller Machines (ATMs).Magic Cash works with the mobile phone; it is a no-cheque, no-withdrawal slip and no-debit card financial transaction that gives customers easy access to draw cash from any of the bank's ATMs anytime. It relieves customers the burden and frustration associated with the sudden loss or...

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Terrible traffic, no public toilets, no rail system – but millions of us Lagos

One day, in February last year, the road that leads to my house in Lagos was removed. Without prior warning or explanation, a group of labourers began pulling out recently laid paving stones. By the end of the week the road was completely bare, the stones piled high to one side. The story my neighbours and I later heard was that the private developer who had laid the stones months earlier, having lost out on a soon-to-be-signed property deal, decided...

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Africa's squandered commodity boom erodes U.S. trade promise

AGOA offers Africa duty-free access to U.S. markets Africa remains far too reliant on resource Kenya, Ethiopia building manufacturing sectors Commodity boom squandered in oil-rich Angola A fresh U.S. trade pact could provide relief to African economies buffeted by the commodities slump but a failure to reform during the boom years has left many countries unable to profit from tariff-free access to the world's largest market. In an effort to boost...

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Nigeria to start oil reforms before new industry law

Nigeria will start reforming its oil industry using existing laws before it can pass a long-awaited Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), which will take a while to fine-tine, the new head of the state-oil company NNPC said on Tuesday. NNPC mega fuel station Emmanuel Kachikwu, a former Exxon executive was appointed by President Muhammadu Buhari last month with a brief to root out corruption at the state oil firm. He has started restructuring the NNPC...

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Nigeria stocks fall for second straight week, despite slight gain, naira firms

Nigeria's stock market fell for the second consecutive week despite a slight gain of 0.44 percent on Friday as investors worried about the persistent decline in crude prices sold off shares. Nigeria's stock market index, which has the second-biggest weighting after Kuwait on the MSCI frontier market index, dropped to a 4-1/2 month low on Monday, below a psychological level of 30,000 points. Nigerian stock brokers The continued decline in crude...

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Nigerian interbank rates rise on liquidity shortage

Nigeria's interbank lending rates rose sharply this week to an average of 40 percent from 14 percent last week after state-owned energy firm NNPC recalled a portion of its funds from commercial lenders. Emefiele, CBN chief NNPC sells dollars to commercial lenders monthly and usually withdraws a portion of the naira proceeds to deposit in its account with the central bank of Africa's top crude exporter.The central bank's decision to have commercial...

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Nigeria's new NNPC boss seeks early deregulation of petroleum sector

Nigeria's state-owned energy firm  NNPC new chief executive, Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu, has called for speedy deregulation of the Africa's top crude exporter’s oil and gas sector to boost its potentials and growth. NNPC HQ Kachikwu, represented by Bolanle Ashafa, acting managing director, Nigeria Engineering and Technical Company (NETCO), said deregulation would encourage domestic private sector participation and inflow of foreign investments. He...

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Yields on Nigerian bond seen flat next week

Nigeria's bond market is expected to be moderately flat next week due to tight liquidity and persistent uncertainty on government policy direction.Yields have risen around 30 percentage points across all tenors week-on-week after some commercial lenders sold-off part of their holdings to raise funds to meet immediate obligations.Nigeria's central bank directed commercial lenders earlier this month to pay for their dollar purchases 48 hours in advance...

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Emerging central banks step in to curb currency falls

Central bankers across emerging markets are being forced into action to stem falls in their currencies, especially after China allowed its yuan to weaken to four-year lows. Emefiele, Nigeria's central bank gov A JPMorgan index tracking 22 emerging market currencies has hit successive record lows. With analysts forecasting further yuan depreciation, more weakness looks likely. Until recently, policymakers in the developing world, facing sluggish...

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It’s time to empower your spouse financially

By Kenneth DoghudjeI’m no relationship expert, but if you desire a peaceful and successful marriage it is absolutely essential that you invest in your partner’s financial success. Enough of being the only one who controls all the resources, instead use some of it to build income streams for your partner so that their dependence on you for all their needs and wants significantly reduces.The truth is everyone has needs and wants which require financial...

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Nigerian president fires AMCON CEO Chike-Obi, dissolves board

Finally, President Muhammadu Buhari has sacked the chief executive of NIgeria's "bad bank",  Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), Mustafa Chike-Obi and replaced him with Ahmed Kuru. Chike-Obi, a pioneer chief executive of AMCON was enmeshed in controversy, having joined the campaign trail of ex-president Goodluck Jonathan against code of conduct for public officials and rigorously campaigned against the emergency of President...

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Gabon's President Bongo gives inheritance to charity

In a rare move not seen among African leaders, Gabon's President Ali Bongo has pledged to give his share of the inheritance from his father to charity and said his family was also handing over properties including a villa in the capital and two homes in Paris to the state. Bongo has led the central African oil producer since winning a 2009 election that followed the death of his father, longtime President Omar Bongo. Gabon's President, Ali Bongo Ali...

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Shoprite plans 14 new outlets in Nigeria, to build distribution centre

South African grocer Shoprite Holdings, Africa's biggest retailer said on Tuesday it plans to open 14 new stores in the next 20 months in Nigeria and a distribution centre, aiming to move goods faster, the company chief executive  Whitey Basson said. A Shoprite mull Basson said Shoprite is banking on rapid growth in markets such as Nigeria and Angola where it aims to change the shopping habits of Africa's rising middle class. Angola,...

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Nigeria's Access Bank raises cash for expansion, lending

Nigeria's Access Bank raised 41.71 billion naira ($210 million) through a rights issue meant for expansion of branches as well as lending, sending its shares rising.In a document released on Tuesday, the lender said the rights issue was 79.3 percent subscribed by shareholders and came in below its target of 52.6 billion naira.The bank had offered 7.62 billion shares at 6.90 naira per share to its existing shareholders at one for three shares in a...

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Ghana likely to miss 750,000 T cocoa purchases target -sources

Ghana's cocoa purchases for 2014/15 crop year are below 700,000 and are unlikely to meet the government's revised full season target of 750,000 given that the period will end in mid-September, industry sources told Reuters on Tuesday.  Cocoa beans and pods Industry regulator Cocobod said at the start of the season last October that Ghana, the world's second biggest cocoa exporter, would produce more than 1 million tonnes but revised the...

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South Africa's Shoprite hits profit estimates

South African grocer Shoprite Holdings Africa's biggest retailer, met its profit estimates with a 10.8 percent rise in full-year earnings on Tuesday as it stole market share in its food business from rivals.Shoprite said diluted headline earnings per share totaled 772.9 cents in the year ended June, in line with the 773 cents estimate by Thomson Reuters StarMine SmartEstimates. A Shoprite store in Nigeria Headline EPS is the most widely...

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Nigerian naira now 217 dollar on weak demand

Nigeria's naira currency firmed against the dollar on the parallel market on Monday on weak demand amid improved dollar liquidity from a central bank sustained hard currency sales in the market, traders said.The naira traded at 217 to the dollar at the parallel market, better than the 221 it closed last Friday as the market felt the impact of dollar sales by the central bank to bureau de change operators in the last two weeks."The market has started feeling the effect of the dollar sales by the central bank in the last two weeks and tight measures...

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TSA: Why government money should be in government bank - ex-CBN chief

By Obadiah Mailafia Consider the case of a single household that operates 10 different accounts with right of access by every member of the family. Such multiple accounts would obviously be difficult to operate with any high degree of prudence. The household is unlikely to have a full sense of its assets and liabilities in an accurate and timely manner. The fact that every member of the family has a right to write a cheque on any of the accounts is also a recipe for chaos. I know of a friend who operated a joint account with his wife. He was a...

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