| The Nation
$5.5b loan: Moody’s downgrade raises borrowing cost The Moody’s Investors’ Service downgrade of Nigeria’s long-term issuer and senior unsecured debt rating to B2 from B1 (with a stable outlook) means higher cost of international borrowing, top financial analyst Bismarck Rewane has said. Shareholders back NSE’s one-kobo pricing rules Retail shareholders have expressed support for the planned implementation of a new pricing rule that will allow stocks on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) to trade below their nominal value and as low as one kobo. DisCos’ revenue shortfalls hit N892.4b Electricity distribution companies (DisCos) have piled up a loss of N892.4 billion. CBN commits N44b to Anchor Borrowers’ programme The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has committed N44.1 billion to the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP) through the 13 participating financial institutions. NCRIB advocates compulsory agric insurance for economic growth The Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB) has underscored the need for government to make agricultural insurance compulsory in the country. Punch Banks weigh recapitalisation options as pressure mounts Commercial banks, especially mid-sized and small lenders in the country, are considering new options to raise additional capital as pressure continues to mount on them from various fronts. Construction firms asks FIRS to refund N36bn excess tax The Federation of Construction Industry has said that over N36bn Withholding Tax credit belonging to its members is pending with the Federal Inland Revenue Service. N700m spent on IT infrastructure, others – Mines ministry The Ministry of Mines and Steel Development has denied spending N700m on the acquisition of a web portal. Insurance bill will enhance underwriting business, says NAICOM The Commissioner for Insurance, Alhaji Mohammed Kari, has said that the insurance bill will boost insurance business and regulation when passed into law. Vanguard N261bn inflow to stabilise interbank interest rates The interbank money market will this week receive inflow of N261 billion which will enhancing stability of cost of funds in the market. Last week, cost of funds fell sharply due to inflow of N233.8 billion on Thursday from matured treasury bills (TBs). Senate to increase AMCON powers for speedy loan recovery The Senate is set to increase the powers of the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) in order to facilitate its debt recovery mandate. Worry, as other banks lose market share to big 5 Capital market operators and investors have expressed concern that the widening gap between tier-1 and tier -2 banks may lead to loss of depositors’ confidence in tier-2 banks as full results of 14 banks listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE, in the first nine months of this year (9M’17) point to increasing dominance of the market space by the tier-1 banks to the detriment of the tier-2 banks. Guardian CBN’s policy saves N217b from rice import The capital control policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), which excluded 41 items from accessing foreign exchange (forex) at the official window, saved the country N217 billion ($600 million) worth of forex in its first full year of implementation in 2016. This Day Market Remains Bullish on Sustained Investor Sentiment The Nigerian bourse sustained its bullish performance as the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) All-Share Index (ASI) rose further by 0.49 per cent to close higher at 37,120.28. Market capitalisation added N62.5 billion to close at N12.847 trillion. Reuters U.S. crude oil exports to Asia soar, complicating OPEC’s efforts: U.S. crude oil is flooding into Asia, and may continue to do so as the arbitrage window that was initially created by Hurricane Harvey remains open, even though the disruption from the costliest storm to hit the Gulf of Mexico has faded. |
