In the news: NSE weekly equities’ turnover hits N51.5bn

In the news: NSE weekly equities’ turnover hits N51.5bn

Punch

Naira depreciates to 365/dollar despite CBN interventions

The naira depreciated marginally by 0.55 per cent at the parallel market week-on-week to close at N365 on Friday.

Banks borrow N671bn from CBN in five days

Deposit Money Banks in the country borrowed the sum of N671.47bn from the Central Bank of Nigeria in the past five working days, data from the CBN have revealed.

Nigeria, others need commodity-price surge to avert debt crunch–IMF

The sub-Saharan Africa faces a potential debt crunch unless commodity prices improve and boost the pace of economic growth, the International Monetary Fund has said.

Fuel queues return to Lagos, persist in Abuja, others …as oil workers begin strike today

The lingering petrol scarcity in many parts of the country grew worse on Sunday in Lagos, Abuja, Nasarawa, Kaduna and Niger states as many filling stations were shut.

NSE weekly equities’ turnover hits N51.5bn

A total turnover of 1.852 billion shares worth N51.523bn in 23,863 deals, were traded last week by investors on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

$2.8bn pipeline contract will change Nigeria’s energy landscape – Presidency

The Presidency on Sunday said the nation’s energy landscape was set for a major change with the award of a $2,809,522,548.36 gas pipeline contract approved by the Federal Executive Council as proposed by the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.

This Day

Dangote Accuses BUA of Stealing and Illegally Mining Limestone

The management of Dangote Group has accused BUA of engaging in illegal mining of limestone deposited in its Mining Lease No. 2541 located in a boundary town of Oguda/Ubo in Okene, Kogi State.

Banking Industry Fraud Drops by 38% in Two Years

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) at the weekend disclosed that despite the increase in the value and volume of electronic payment transactions this year, there have been decline in fraud cases.

DMO to List Green Bond for Easy Trading and Liquidity

Investors staking their funds in the Federal Government maiden N10.69 billion Green Bond have been assured of liquidity as the Debt Management Office (DMO) said the bond would be listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and FMDQ OTC Securities Exchange.

Guardian

Multiplicity of taxes discourages investments, says Adeosun

The Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun has stressed the need for salary earners operating other businesses to also pay tax from their profits in order to help grow the economy.

No intentions to undermine SEC’s authority, Oando insists

In response to the decision by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to commence a forensic audit into the affairs of the company, Oando Plc has reiterated that its management has not taken any action to undermine the authority of the Commission.

The Nation

NSE places 44 companies on red alert

The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) authorities have placed 44 companies on red alert, raising a caution to investors to beware of underlying corporate governance abuse.

Lafarge Africa closes application for N132b rights issue

Lafarge Africa Plc at the weekend closed application list for its N131.65 billion rights issue, rounding off the subscription to its major capital raising aimed at deleveraging its balance sheet and rebuilding a more supportive capital base.

Reuters

Nigerian oil union calls for strike after talks hit deadlock

A major Nigerian oil union said on Saturday it would launch a strike from Monday after talks aimed at resolving a dispute with domestic oil and gas companies reached a deadlock.

The post In the news: NSE weekly equities’ turnover hits N51.5bn appeared first on Realising Ambitions.

Source: Articles

Let down your hair, it’s Christmas!

Let down your hair, it’s Christmas!

As exciting as year-end can be, it can also be very busy and demanding. With so many meetings to attend, budgets to put together and pertinent decisions to take, one could easily forget it is supposed to be the ‘holiday’ season. But it has been an eventful year and you have worked round the clock to achieve the victories you recorded. You deserve to take some time off, spoil yourself a little and have a good time this Christmas.

So, what are your plans for the holidays? Do you have children returning home or are you kicking it solo? Whichever way, you might find the suggestions below useful guide to letting down your hair and enjoying the holidays this year.

Holiday time is family time

What if you take two extra days apart from the regular Christmas and Boxing day public holidays just to be with your family. You could play games, share meals, and create memories that will last a lifetime. Or perhaps pop some corn, grab some drinks, and turn your living room into a cinema. What’s showing? Old movies with your spouse or latest movies with your children, it’s bound to be fun all the way. You could also pick out a personalized gift for every member of your family.

It’s a House party!

This could be so much fun. Reach out to your close friends and family, including the ones your busy schedule didn’t permit you to see all through the year. You could play outdoor games, enjoy barbecue, and finger foods by the pool or even have a karaoke contest right there in your compound. A house party is a good way to connect with all the people dear to you and have a jolly good time. 26th December maybe?

An evening out?

When was the last time you enjoyed an outing that was not work related? This season naturally offers a plethora of fun activities. From music concerts to comedy shows and galas. You could find one that interests you and take an evening out to attend, maybe with your spouse, children, or really close friends. If you are into theatre for instance, Fela & his kalakuta queens will be showing at TerraKulture all through the holidays. And you can also enjoy a beautiful time of golf with your associates at Lakowe Lakes Golf and Country Estate.

Staycation/Weekend Getaway?

Another thing that could be really relaxing is enjoying a weekend getaway at a state of the art hotel, perhaps even in a different city, if you care for a change of environment. Staycations are easy to plan and do not require much of a budget. You could book your suite in advance or upon arrival, especially as your ARM Esteem status entitles you to exclusive discounts at selected Marriot Hotels across the country. Want to leave the hustle and bustle of Lagos to enjoy tranquillity and a burst of Culture at Le’ Meridian Ibom? Sounds good right. To activate your discount privilege, please reach out to your relationship manager.

However, you choose to observe the Christmas holidays, make it a holiday to remember. Our wishes for you are for a beautiful end to 2017 and a fantastic new year ahead.

The post Let down your hair, it’s Christmas! appeared first on Realising Ambitions.

Source: Articles

Six changes you should consider making in 2018

Six changes you should consider making in 2018

Please don’t call it New Year Resolutions – because that tag seems to have been jinxed with many never being able to achieve their resolutions. Instead call it your 2018 commitment to self. How about that?

Commit to making these six changes in 2018 for a better year:

Be more positive

There is so much negativity everywhere, but when you choose to see the positive in every situation, you’ll be shocked how your life seems filled with joy and happiness. Be intentional about your state of mind and what you dwell on in 2018.

Be realistic

Don’t allow yourself to live in a fool’s paradise. Realize that life is filled with good and bad. Choose to dwell on thoughts of the good but be realistic enough to make plans in case the scales tip and a little bit of bad happens.

Save and invest more

When there is a will, there is always a way. You can still earn the same amount and save a little more. It starts with a decision and a commitment to make it happen. A direct debit mandate can help you further stick firmly to that decision so that you don’t have to worry about forgetting to put aside that money. Let the future you envision for yourself and your loved ones be the motivation to save and invest more in 2018.

Love more

Have you noticed how emotionally liberating it is when you love more instead of hating? Life becomes more promising, people become more fun to stay around and your heart becomes lighter just by giving a lot more love.

Fight more

Giving up is the easiest thing in the world to do. How many times have you found yourself giving up on people, dreams, and goals in the past? In 2018, dare to fight more. Don’t let the fear of failing stop you. Let the fear of not trying fuel your fire.

Live more

You only live once, and you may as well make your life a masterpiece. Give your children the best education, live in the house of your dreams, invest in the dreams you care about, take vacations to destinations you love and enjoy life the best way possible.

Bottom-line: You can live life on your terms and make sure those you care about have a better lifestyle because of you. But you need a plan to make this possible. Now is the perfect time to draw up your blueprint for 2018.

 

Let us help you choose a plan for your 2018. Send us an email at [email protected] or call 0700 CALL ARM for immediate assistance.

 

The post Six changes you should consider making in 2018 appeared first on Realising Ambitions.

Source: Articles

In the news: CBN injects $210m into forex market

This Day

Investors Stake N27bn on Equities as Dangote Cement Lifts Market

High trading in the shares of Dangote Cement Plc on Tuesday lifted the overall value of transactions at the equities market by 445.4 per cent to N26.809 billion.

IMF Harps on Economic Diversification for Nigeria, Others

The Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Christine Lagarde on Tuesday stressed the need for Nigeria and other African countries to ensure that they diversify their economies in other to be able to withstand shocks.

Bonds Lead Capital Market Issuances, Account for N1.4trn

Bonds continued to dominate new issuances accounting for N1.364 trillion or 88 per cent of the total issuances in the capital market between January and September 2017.

CBN: Local Rice Production Records 70% Increase

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has stated that the production of rice locally has increased to 70per cent following the introduction of the Anchor Borrowers Programme by the federal government.

Bharti Airtel Denies Report of Its Planned Exit from African Operations

Bharti Airtel has denied recent report that it is exiting its operations from three African markets that were said to be unprofitable.

Kachikwu: 2019 Target to End Petrol Imports

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, on Tuesday disclosed that the federal government’s target to end importation of petroleum products in 2019 is non-negotiable.

The Nation

Senate kicks against tariff increase by DisCos

The Senate Committee on Privatisation yesterday in Kano, said there was no need for the proposed increase in electricity tariff.

Union Bank sells N291m shares to employees

Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc has listed 51.299 million ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), pushing its total issued shares from 16.936 billion ordinary shares to 16.987 billion ordinary shares.

Nigeria plans to boost oil output as price hits $65

Less than two weeks after the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)’s decision to extend oil production cuts, Nigeria and Libya are planning to raise output next year. Oil price has hit $65, the highest in 30 months.

Banks, insurance firms owe NHF N6.7 trillion

The two sectors have failed to remit N6.7 trillion to the Fund since its inception contrary to the law setting it up.

NNPC threatens to shut stations hoarding fuel

The Group Managing Director (GMD), Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Dr. Maikanti Baru, yesterday said the Federal Government would adopt an “aggressive measure” to tackle the artificial scarcity of petroleum products in parts of the country.

Punch

CBN injects $210m into forex market

The interbank window of the nation’s foreign exchange market on Tuesday received a boost of $210m from the Central Bank of Nigeria.

GE, Mainstream sign N8.3bn Kainji power plant rehabilitation contract

Mainstream Energy Solutions Limited has injected a fresh $26m (N8.3bn) investment into the Kainji Hydro Power Plant to rehabilitate its Hydro Turbine Generator unit.

TSA: Reps query Buhari’s exemption of N50bn NNPC accounts

The House of Representatives, on Tuesday, raised questions over a “purported” presidential approval exempting some special Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation accounts from the Treasury Single Account.

Vanguard

Alternative securities market records a decline

The Alternative Securities Market, ASeM, of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE, closed the 12 months period to December 12, 2017, in the negative region, recording -3.62 percent Return-on-Investment, RoI.

DMO deploys Eurobond proceeds to repay N198bn TBs

The Debt Management Office, DMO, yesterday commenced the process of refinancing domestic debt with proceeds of $500 million Eurobond as it announced its intention to repay in full the N198 billion treasury bills (TBs) scheduled to mature this month.

Reuters

W. Africa Crude-Differentials underpinned by Forties outage

Differentials for West African grades were stable to firmer, traders said, after a North Sea Forties crude pipeline outage that is expected to lead to a rise in European refining demand.

Nigerian court drops most corruption charges against Senate president

Nigeria’s court of appeal on Tuesday dismissed 15 corruption charges against the Senate president related to alleged false declarations of assets, but it upheld three other charges against him.

The post In the news: CBN injects $210m into forex market appeared first on Realising Ambitions.

Source: Blog

Call me daddy

It was supposed to be a quick dash across town. All I wanted to do was meet up with a friend over lunch and return to work before the break elapsed. Lunch went well.  Returning to work however posed a challenge. The whole of Awolowo way was blocked, one of those stand-still traffic situations capable of ruining a perfectly good day. Weighing my options, I opted to park my car at the restaurant and return to the office via a motorbike. The rider managed to manoeuvre his way through the traffic and I could already see my office up ahead when he suddenly dived, attempting to climb the road divider in a bid to cut out a particularly busy spot. He miscalculated and instead of getting on the divider, ended up on the other side of the road, right before a truck. The okada rider was too dazed to a make a quick decision. Adrenaline set in, reason gave way to fear and I took a leap, jumped off the bike into the gutter. I must have hit my head because everything became blurry, I could not place anything but the face of my daughter. As I slipped into oblivion, I kept seeing her face as I saw it that morning when she smiled and waved goodbye to me.

You see, I have a 13 month old daughter, yet my only child. She clocked one just last month and as a proud daddy, I almost emptied my Money Market Fund account hosting half of Lagos at her first-year birthday party. My wife and I were already discussing schools, we already had three options of nursery schools to choose from. In fact, I had already applied for a two day leave at work scheduled for next week so that I can process her international passport. We wanted her to travel with us for our family vacation in August.  Just this morning, she babbled something that sounded like ‘mama’. I remember my wife’s excitement, I can still see her happy face as she feigned the shoki dance to spite me. our daughter laughed, not quite sure why mummy was so happy. I bent down and stroked her cheek urging her to call dada. But again, she said mama. Just this morning.

Somebody must have helped me because when I came to, I found myself in a hospital room. As the doctor went on about slight concussions, rest, medication and the like, I could hardly hear him. I was overwhelmed by the realisation that I could easily have died. Just like that. I could have died, before my daughter’s first day at school, before getting a chance to show her Disney world, before hearing her call me daddy. She would never have had the chance to call me daddy and I would have died, just like that. I knew I would never take anything for grated again in my life. I knew I would treasure every moment I had with my family henceforth.

I was discharged a few hours later. Doctor said I was fine, just a slight bruise on the left side of my head. He said the massive bandage round my head, adequate rest and the prescribed drugs would fix me. My colleague volunteered to drive me home. He was my last dialled number before the accident and had been contacted by the hospital. My wife had no idea what had happened. When she opened the door to my bandaged head, she screamed in shock. I held her, assured her I was fine and went straight to my daughter, beautifully curled up on the sofa, sleeping like one without worries. The sight broke me, I held her and sobbed repeating time and again, I’m going to be your daddy, I’ll be here when you grow, I’m going to be your daddy. Reacting in her sleep, she turned to other side, managed to open her sleepy eyes briefly and almost whispered ‘dada’.

I knew it in that moment, I would do anything possible to protect this child. If anything ever happened to me, I had to be sure that she will be fine. Later that night, I scheduled a meeting with my relationship manager. I already had an Education Plan set up for her and it was finally time to get that Life Insurance. Life is too fickle for me not to be prepared.

The post Call me daddy appeared first on Realising Ambitions.

Source: Blog

Ask Shade: My Late Father’s Family Head Wants to Give the Family House to Our Irresponsible Half-Brother

Dear Shade,
I came across a few of your previous articles and I am hopeful that you will be able to help with my dilemma. I am the first child of my father who recently passed away. He had two wives and five children; one son and four daughters including me. My mother, his first wife had only daughters, while his second wife had a boy and a girl.

Besides my half-brother who has not been able to progress academically, we are all relatively successful in our careers and academics. My father did not have a will, so the family head is going to distribute the inheritance and he is about to give everything to my half-brother, the first and only son, in the name of tradition.

My brother is young and hardly responsible, my sisters and mum also feel cheated. I am worried that my half-brother will mismanage everything my father worked for. Is there anything I can do to ensure the inheritance is distributed among us all? Does tradition still count in this day and age? He left us houses, land, pension fund and cash in his bank account.
Ivie, from Edo state.
**
Hello Ivie,
Please accept my condolences on the passing of your father. Dealing with the loss of a close relative is never easy. The extra burden of sorting and distributing properties left behind can also be very stressful, especially when the deceased did not have a Will.

When a person dies without a Will, the intestacy rules, native laws and customs and religious rules of the deceased determine the succession of his properties (also known as “Estate”).

To determine which law would be applied, it would also be important to consider your father’s State of Origin. If your father was a Benin man (which I presume) subject to the customs of the Benin tradition, the law requires that the eldest surviving son would be entitled to the family house where your father lived after the performance of the second burial ceremonies while the remaining properties may be distributed amongst the remaining children.

In this scenario, your brother being the eldest son of your father may be entitled to your father’s family house, whilst the remaining of your father’s assets would be distributed amongst the you and all siblings.

Kindly note however that although the traditions may be adopted for the distribution of your father’s assets, those traditions must not on the basis of your gender, violate your rights. Based on a recently decided Supreme Court case, the rights of female children to inherit their parents’ properties was supported, and the Igbo tradition that disinherits female children was found no longer applicable. This means that where the local traditions are in any way contrary to your rights, they would be invalid in effecting the distribution of your father’s assets.

It is important that you strive to maintain family unity in your resolution. Perhaps a family meeting where the distribution process is clearly discussed and agreed upon by concerned persons would help. If you consider it necessary, you could employ the services of a lawyer to guide you on the Supreme Court’s landmark judgment on inheritance, especially as it affects women.

This situation and the accompanying hassle could easily have been avoided if your father had a Will. It is important that you take a learning from this and as such commence planning your estate in good time.

The post Ask Shade: My Late Father’s Family Head Wants to Give the Family House to Our Irresponsible Half-Brother appeared first on Realising Ambitions.

Source: Blog

In the news: FG plans N110bn bond auction

Punch

CBN’ll use BVN to blacklist loan defaulters –Emefiele

The Central Bank of Nigeria under the auspices of the Bankers’ Committee has concluded plans to use the Bank Verification Number of customers to blacklist loan defaulters from accessing further loans in the nation’s banking system.

FG reviewing non-performing privatised firms’ operations — BPE

The Bureau of Public Enterprises says it has started reviewing privatised public enterprises that have failed to live up to expectation.

577 firms bid for NNPC insurance renewal contract

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation on Sunday said it had opened 577 bids submitted by firms seeking to secure the insurance renewal contract for the corporation’s oil and non-oil assets.

Capital market operators seek single licence from CBN, SEC

Capital market operators on Sunday called on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to grant them single dealing licence to access discount window.

FG plans N110bn bond auction this month

The Federal Government, through the Debt Management Office, is scheduled to hold the last bond auction for the year on December 13, 2017.

Discos installing substandard prepaid meters, says TCN

According to the Market Operator, a department in the TCN, many substandard meters are being given out by Discos to electricity consumers, a development that will attract sanctions if not stopped.

This Day

FG Earned $7bn from Addax Petroleum Since 2009, Says Oil Firm

Addax Petroleum Development (Nigeria) Limited, which operates Production Sharing Contract (PSC) with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) PSC has produced 425 million barrels of crude oil and generated over $7 billion in revenue to the Nigerian government since 2009 when SINOPEC took over the company.

Flour Mills Applies to Raise N40 Billion via Rights Issue

Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc (FMN) has applied to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) to raise about N39.856 billion from the existing shareholders.

Equities Market Sustains Rally on Strong Investor Sentiment

The bulls remained in control of the equities market as the market recorded its third consecutive gain on sustained strong investors’ sentiments.

FX Window Records $1.11bn Transactions in One Week

The level of activities on the Investors and Exporters (I&E) foreign exchange (FX) window strengthened to $1.110 billion in just one week, compared with the $759.2 billion recorded the preceding week.

CBN Mulls Reducing CRR for SME-friendly Banks

As part of efforts to encourage commercial banks to lend more to operators of micro, small and medium scale enterprises (MSMEs), the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is considering lowering the cash reserve requirement (CRR) for SME-focused banks.

Banks Urged to Enhance Private Sector Credit

The President of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), Prof. Segun Ajibola has advised commercial banks in the country to increase credit to the private sector to grow the economy.

Guardian

Forex market gets $514m boost ahead of Yuletide

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) ended foreign exchange (forex) market transactions for the week with $303.9 million, as it earlier in the week, sold $210 million to sustain liquidity.

Probe reveals N30b oil revenue ‘hidden’ by NNPC

Full disclosure in the administration of crude sales remains an issue at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) despite current efforts at enthroning transparency in the conduct of government business.

Senate urges caution on review of privatised firms

The Senate has advised the Federal Government to exercise caution in the review of privatised enterprises by the past governments so as not to scare away foreign investors from the country.

The Nation

Nigerian capital market issuances hit N1.55trn in September – SEC

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Sunday said that the total value of issuances in the Nigerian capital market amounted to N1.55 trillion in September.

Forex restriction on 41 items good for economy, says CBN

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said that restriction of access to foreign exchange (forex) on the 41 items has had a positive impact on the economy.

Vanguard

CBN unveils new measures to create jobs

Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has unveiled two-policy measures designed to accelerate the growth of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), boost non-oil export revenue    and facilitate job creation.

Reuters

Nigerian finance minister says gave no order to halt Oando inquiry

Nigeria’s finance ministry has not interfered in an inquiry by the country’s market regulator into oil company Oando, the finance minister, who last week suspended the Securities and Exchange Commission’s head, said.

Helios, others bid for Nigerian telecoms firm 9mobile

Private equity firm Helios Investment Partners has submitted a bid to acquire Nigeria’s 9mobile under a sale process aimed at finding new investors for the debt-laden telecoms firm.

The post In the news: FG plans N110bn bond auction appeared first on Realising Ambitions.

Source: Blog

Balling on your entry-level salary

Nothing beats the thrill of landing your first job post-NYSC especially after months or even years of job hunting with no success.

Now you have a salary and probably some benefits, issa big boy! Many things you’ve always wanted now seem achievable. You begin to dream of a change of wardrobe – how else will your Instagram followers know that you’ve gotten a job if you don’t slay for the gram? Bus rides start becoming burdensome – Ha! In this your fine suit, you’ll now come and start sweating in a bus? A new car or even daily Uber rides suddenly look inviting but wait! If you spend on all you ‘want’, you could end up being perpetually broke. Unless, you get strategic about this matter by introducing that little word called budgeting.

We know you hear it all the time but really, budgeting will help you distribute your money wisely and spend according to plan. In other words, so you can ball without breaking your bank account. Here are some smart money moves you should make:

Don’t bleed your monthly expenses

Guess what? Those new shoes, subscribing for more internet than you actually need and even those smoothies you seem to order every Thursday because ‘delivery is free’ (we get it, we’re not judging) may be bleeding you dry.

Take a strategic review of your monthly expenses and you may save enough to paint the town red with your squad in your own little way. You can also get creative with hangouts. Try going to a park (there are many to choose from) with your friends and you can all bring your own food, drinks and music.

Eat your own food

Do you know how to cook? If yes, then cook your own food. If you take lunch to work every day, by the weekend, the money you’d have otherwise used for lunch should be enough to make your pockets heavier.

Get a cool deal on used clothes

Find cool places online where you can sell old clothes that are still in great condition which you won’t be wearing again. The internet is buzzing with many of these online vendors. Try it out, you can use that extra money.

No shame in being a freebie/giveaway warrior

Did you know that there are many events you can get free access to just by registering online? or better yet, can you part with your email address or free space on your phone? It’s worth it if you’ll be getting access to a great event not to mention the free gifts.

 

Have fun on some of the money you save but don’t forget it’s always a good idea to save for the future. You can put a portion of it towards Additional voluntary contribution in your retirement account – talk about planning for tomorrow, today.

 

 

The post Balling on your entry-level salary appeared first on Realising Ambitions.

Source: Blog

ECONOMIC UPDATE: NOVEMBER 2017

According to figures from the NBS stated in this report, capital importation to Nigeria sustained its strong growth for the second consecutive quarter in Q3 2017.

Capital flows riding the ranges

Capital importation to Nigeria sustained its strong growth for the second consecutive quarter in Q3 2017, with combined flows of $4.1 billion over the quarter being two-fold higher QoQ and YoY, according to data from the NBS.

In sync with trend, the strong capital flows emerged from portfolio flows which printed at $2.8 billion, an increase of 260% and 200% QoQ and YoY respectively, even as ‘other investment’ sustained the positive momentum, rising 69% QoQ (125% YoY) to $1.3 billion largely on account of loans.

That said, foreign direct investment (FDI) printed at an 11-quarter low of $117 million. Amidst improved fundamentals of companies and attractive valuation relative to peers combined with FX liberalisation, portfolio flows largely flooded the equities market which contributed nearly half (48%) of the total flows and the highest in the last 11 quarters of $1.9 billion ($1.3 billion excluding one-off transaction in Dangote cement and Mobil).

Furthermore, amidst elevated interest rate environment and falling YoY headline inflation, foreign capital was upbeat to short term debt instrument (+630% QoQ) and bonds (+100% QoQ).

The strong appetite for naira assets, which is mainly pull driven, largely reflected the combined impact of the liberalisation of the currency market in late April, higher crude oil proceeds and external reserve, improved FX liquidity as well as the thirst to lock-in on higher interest rate in the domestic market.

Eurobond Issuance: dovish outlook for FI Yields

Late November, Nigeria accessed the global debt market for the 4th time1 raising $3 billion her largest single issuance on record. The issuance was split into the 10-year and 30-year series of $1.5 billion apiece bearing coupon of 6.5% and 7.625% respectively. Notwithstanding the recent ratings downgrade by Moody and interest normalization in the US, the offer was oversubscribed with orders in excess of $11.4 billion (bid-cover of 3.8x).

The general confidence of the market reflects more comfort with Nigerian dollar risk because of improving oil prices even as the economy continue to show signs of stability2, as well as investors preference for high yield emerging market risk assets. Comparing the cost with recent issuances especially that of Egypt’s 10-year and 30-year bond at rates of 6.65% and 7.95% respectively, the issue looks relatively favorable.

Budget 2018: Still a long stretch

President Buhari presented the proposed federal budget for 2018 tagged “the Budget of Consolidation” to the National assembly with FGN proposing a 15.7% YoY expansion in aggregate expenditure to N8.61 trillion splits into: non-debt recurrent expenditure of N3.5 trillion (+32% YoY), capital expenditure of N2.4 trillion (+11.7% YoY), debt service of N2 trillion (+21% YoY) and statutory transfers of N457 billion (+5.1% YoY).

To implement the proposed 2018 fiscal outlay, the FGN projects retained revenues of N6.6 trillion (+30% YoY) largely underpinned by higher oil receipts (+15% YoY to N2.4 trillion) and a 40% YoY jump in non-oil revenues to N4.2 trillion.

On non-oil, while the 2018 budget assumes higher estimates for Independent and other revenues (+80% YoY to N2.84 trillion), it projects a 3% slide in non-oil receipts to N1.33 trillion. Consequently, fiscal deficit is expected to print at N2.01 trillion, albeit lower YoY by 14.5%.

In terms of deficit financing, the FG plans to raise N306 billion from sale of non-oil assets with a tilt towards higher external borrowing (50% apiece for domestic and external borrowing) which implies borrowing of $2.8 billion offshore in 2018.

Read the detailed economic update here

The post ECONOMIC UPDATE: NOVEMBER 2017 appeared first on Realising Ambitions.

Source: Blog

Your phone or your life?

How long can you stay without your phone?

If you answered honestly, probably not too long. For many of us, our phones have become our besties. A day without our phones feel like something important is missing.

If you lost your phone today without any sort of backup to the contacts you have or the files you saved in it, it would feel like starting life again with a new phone. Not only will you be spending extra, you may never recover your lost files.

This is why it is normal to see a lot more people backup their files just in case their phones get missing or gets damaged. Some others even insure their expensive phones to avoid stories that touch.

There is so much fuss about phones that people go as far as stealing just to ‘belong’ to the class of smartphone owners.

If phones are this important and we do so much to protect not just the phone, but the files and contacts we have in it; how much more should we be protecting life for those we love?

You fear losing communication with all your phone contacts, don’t you fear how life may change for those you love if they lose you?

You can’t imagine starting all over again getting all the files you lose when your phone is lost or dies, shouldn’t you be more afraid of the people that depend on you starting all over again if God forbid something happens to you?

You never leave your house everyday expecting a thief to steal your phone or for your phone to crash. It’s almost always an accident that claims your phone. This same accident lurks not just around phones, but around lives too.

Accidents happen every day on the roads, in the hospitals, even inside the house. If like your phone, your life unfortunately meets with tragedy, will those you love who depend on you feel lost completely?

Will they have a backup to cushion them financially? Will your children, spouse, parents or siblings (who still depend on you) have the lifestyle they currently do?

The key question is: your phone or your life? You know the answer.

 

Get a Life insurance backup for those you love today. Reach us on 0700 CALL ARM or email [email protected] to discuss options we have available for you.

The post Your phone or your life? appeared first on Realising Ambitions.

Source: Blog