Shareholders of PZ Cussons Approve N1.98bn Dividend
Shareholders of PZ Cussons thursday approved the sum of N1.98 billion as dividend for the 2017 financial year, which translated to a dividend payment of 50 kobo per share. The shareholders gave the approval at the annual general meeting (AGM) held in Abuja.
PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc recorded a revenue of N79.65 billion for the year ended May 31, 2017, up by 14.5 per cent from N69.52 billion posted in 2016. Profit before tax stood at N4.811 billion in 2017, up from N3.148 billion, while profit after tax (PAT) increased by 73.1 per cent to N3.68 billion in 2017 compared to N2.12 billion the previous financial year.
Buhari asked us to focus on northern Nigeria — W/Bank
The President of the World Bank Group, Jim Yong Kim, said on Thursday that the bank had concentrated on the northern region of Nigeria in line with President Muhammadu Buhari’s request.
Kim and the Managing Director, International Monetary Fund, Christine Lagarde, who spoke at separate press conferences in Washington DC, United States, also advised Buhari to invest in things that would enhance economic growth.
Nigeria, EU, others consolidate progress on trade facilitation
Nigeria, Brazil, China, the European Union (EU) and other leading economic powers announced that they have made tremendous progress on investment facilitation initiative for development. The group made this known in Marrakech, Morocco, during the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Mini-Ministerial meeting.
In a breakthrough for Nigeria, the group of World Trade Organisation (WTO) Friends of Investment Facilitation for Development (FIFD) pledged support for the success of the High-Level Investment Forum scheduled to hold in Abuja from November 3- 4. The Forum will be co-hosted by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment and the Economic Community of West Africa (ECOWAS) Commission in partnership with FIFD.
Interbank lending rate drops to 20% amid cash squeeze
The nation’s overnight lending rate dropped to 20 per cent on Thursday on expectation that a cash squeeze will ease after money market rates more than doubled previous session. The Central Bank of Nigeria has kept liquidity tight to support the currency, leaving its benchmark interest rate on hold at 14 per cent this year.
The CBN also aims to keep rates high to attract foreign inflows into its bond market to boost dollar liquidity. “The market is a bit tight because of FX purchases which mopped up (naira) liquidity,” one trader was quoted by Reuters as saying.
Fidelity Bank Sells $400m Eurobond
Fidelity Bank Plc has successfully issued a $400 million Eurobond. The bank issued the five-year securities with a 10.75 per cent yield on Wednesday. Fidelity is the third Nigerian bank to sell Eurobonds this year after bigger rivals Zenith Bank Plc and United Bank for Africa Plc, while also following the lead of the country’s government, which plans to more than double its outstanding dollar debt to $9 billion.
According to Bloomberg, investors have piled into emerging markets to hunt for higher rates as those in developed nations linger near all-time lows. The Eurobond is the first from Fidelity, which is rated B- by S&P Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings, or six steps into junk territory, since 2013.
Pension fund assets rise by N862bn
The latest report on the Nigerian pension fund administration, which was released on Thursday by the National Bureau of Statistics and the National Pension Commission, indicated that the country’s pension fund assets increased by N862bn to N6.164tn as of December 31, 2016.
According to the report, the N6.164tn pension fund assets represent six per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product, as the figure indicates an increase of N862bn when compared to the N5.302tn recorded in 2015.
$25b contracts: PENGASSAN vows to resist interference in NNPC administration
Oil workers, under the aegis of Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), have vowed to resist any attempt by officials not designated for the administration of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to meddle in the affairs of the association.
The workers warned that they would stop non-executive officials from using top management positions in the NNPC to settle cronies at the detriment of dedicated members of the staff. In a statement by the Secretary of the Group Executive Council (GEC) of PENGASSAN in NNPC, Comrade Sulaiman Sulaiman, they noted that the recent re-organisation in the NNPC was in good faith and it encouraged internal growth.
Growing cyberattacks raise demand for insurance cover
The rising incidence of cyberattacks in the country has prompted an increased demand by corporate organisations for insurance cover to mitigate the risks. Insurance operators said they had started designing policies to meet the rising demand of clients, especially in the financial sector who were susceptible to huge financial losses from cyberattacks.
The Executive Director, Leadway Assurance, Adetola Adegbayi, while speaking at a cyber risk seminar in Lagos on Thursday, stated that cyber risk insurance was a new area that insurers were exploring in order to provide value to their clients.
Pension Fund Assets Hit N6.1 Trillion
The Nigerian Pension Fund Administration Data for 2016 just released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has reflected that the Pension Fund Asset as at December 31, 2016 stood at N6.164 trillion as against N5.302 trillion in 2015.
The total asset as at the period under review represents six per cent of the Nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as against 5.57 per cent in 2015. According to available data, 98.56 per cent of the funds were invested in domestic market while the remaining 1.44 per cent were invested in foreign market.
Stakeholders unveil new funding initiative for mortgage banks
Stakeholders in the housing finance industry have inaugurated the Mortgage Warehouse Funding Limited, a special purpose company set up to provide short-term local currency and competitively priced funding to mortgage banks.
The MWFL, a private-sector driven initiative to enhance mortgage banks’ origination capacity, was incorporated in December 2014 and initially sponsored by a group of eight-member mortgage banks.
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