(Reuters/NAN) Crude oil fell sharply on Monday with U.S. crude briefly dropping below 20 dollars and Brent hitting its lowest level in 18 years on heightened fears that the global coronavirus shutdown could last months and demand for fuel could evaporate further. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 1.14 dollars or 5.3 per cent to 20.37 per cent. “The price of oil is now so low that it is becoming unprofitable to many oil...
The Federal Government has suspended the repayment of loans for three months as part of measures to cushion the impact of COVID-19 outbreak on the economy and businesses in the country. Reading out the measures his government is taking to address the coronavirus pandemic which has affected global business and has affected 97 persons across the country, President Buhari in a national broadcast on Sunday evening said repayment of loans collected under TraderMoni, MarketMoni, and...
LAGOS (Reuters) – Fear of the coronavirus has induced an extraordinary calm in Lagos, Nigeria’s famously boisterous mega-city where streets known for miles of gridlock have emptied of traffic and eateries serving takeaways are almost the only shops open. The largest city in sub-Saharan Africa, with an estimated 20 million population, has been transformed by a week-long shutdown of public life imposed as part of efforts to stem the spread of the highly infectious disease in Nigeria....
The Presidency has dismissed reports that President Muhammadu Buhari has approved N30,000 relief package to be given to every Nigerian with a verified Bank Verification Number (BVN) to cushion hardships occasioned by Coronavirus. News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, was quoted by an online media outfit to have announced the presidential approval of the N30,000 package in a statement. ”The President announced the...
The leadership of the National Assembly on Wednesday met with some ministers and heads of agencies of Federal Government to brainstorm on the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the Nigerian economy. Ezrel Tabiowo, Special Assistant, Press to President of Senate, Ahmad Lawan in a statement, indicated that the meeting focused on a planned review of the 2020 budget. It also focused on Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) passed in 2019....
Dana Airlines has announced the suspension of all its scheduled flight operations for 14 days, effective from midnight of March 25. Mr. Kingsley Ezenwa, Media and Communications Manager of the airlines, made this known in a statement in Lagos on Wednesday. Ezenwa said that the suspension was in response to the recent developments on COVID-19, and the need to support the efforts of the government to stem the further spread of the pandemic. He said...
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) said that passengers could still travel within Nigeria in spite of the suspension of international flight operations. Mrs. Henrietta Yakubu, the General Manager, Corporate Affairs of FAAN, said this in a statement in Lagos on Tuesday. Yakubu said: “We also use this opportunity to request all passengers and other stakeholders to adhere strictly to all travel instructions and guidance in the interest of all.” News Agency of Nigeria...
The Petroleum Product Pricing Regulatory Agency(PPPRA) has announced a sharp cut in the Expected Open Market Price (EOMP) of petroleum and crude oil. Following the Slash in the pump price of petrol to 125 per litre by the Nigeria National Petroleum Commission(NNPC), the petroleum agency signaled a drop in it Open Market price. A statement by the agency said, the move was in line with the government directives to reduce the retail price of Petro...
Last month, World Bank’s managing director David Malpass expressed concern about the amount of debt some of Africa’s economies were piling on. In particular, he worried about the lack of transparency in some of the loan deals being struck with China. Africa’s debt load has soared some 150% to over $583 billion in 2018 from $236 billion 10 years earlier, according to World Bank data. A sizable chunk of that debt in Africa is made...
The Federal Government of Nigeria is considering a review of the 2020 budget in order to make plans for the drop in oil prices triggered by coronavirus outbreak globally, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, the Minister of Finance/Budget Planning said on Wednesday. According to the minister, the government was troubled by the fall in oil revenue and that a mid-term review of the budget was on the table. Briefing newsmen after the Federal Executive Council meeting, the...
