Category Market Update

The market indices of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) appreciated by 0.51 per cent on Wednesday due to gains posted by some blue chips.
The market capitalisation rose by N43 billion or 0.51 per cent to close at N8.525 trillion from the N8.482 trillion recorded on Tuesday.
The All-Share Index, which opened at 24,659.17, grew by 125.78 points or 0.51 per cent to close at 24,784.95.
Analysts attributed the growth to capital appreciation by Flour Mills, GTBank, Zenith Bank, Seplat and Nigerian Breweries.
Seplat led the price gainers’ table with N2.85 to close at N335 per share.
Nigerian Breweries followed with 64k to close at N103.14, while Flour Mill also appreciated by 64k to close at N20 per share.
GTBank gained 46k to close at N16.16, while National Salt increased by 34k to close at N7.74 per share.
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On the other hand, Mobil Oil topped the price losers’ chart, shedding N2.25 to close at N149 per share.
Okomu Oil Palm trailed with a drop of 48k to close at N30, while Custodian and Allied Insurance lost 19k to close at N3.71 per share.
Portland Paint and Product depreciated by 13k to close at N2.75 and Air Service shed 10k to close at N1.90 per share.
The volume of shares traded closed lower with 159.26 million shares valued at N1.11 billion transacted in 2,698 deals.
This was against the 228.29 million shares worth N1.44 billion traded in 3,239 deals on Tuesday.
FBN Holdings was most active for the day, trading 19.18 million shares valued at N64.23 million.
GTBank followed with 19.13 million shares worth N305.39 million, while Zenith Bank traded 15.98 million shares valued at N187.24 million.

Source:© Copyright today Online

The Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Mr. Osacr Onyema has said that more indigenous oil companies are opting for Dual Listing at the Exchange.

Onyema said that after the successful listing of shares of Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) in 2014, more companies in the downstream oil & gas Exploration and Production (E&P) sector have indicated interest to be listed.

The CEO who made the disclosure at NSE/LSEG dual listing conference in Lagos, said there has also been expression of interest from companies with less representation on the Exchange, especially the telcos and utility firms.

Seplat was the first indigenous Nigerian company to dual list its ordinary shares in London and Nigeria after an Initial Public Offering (IPO) that raised as much as $500 million, an equivalent of N82.5 billion, thereby valuing the company at $1.9 billion.

Onyema stated that many more companies are eager to replicate the success story, saying that announcements would have been to that effect if not for the commodity shocks expressed globally in the last couple of months.

“We have done a lot of works with a number of E&P companies and if it wasn’t commodity shocks we have witnessed in the last set of months, you probably would have seen a public announcement. Unfortunately, the way we work, we can’t announce anything until the deal is done. Yes there is a lot of interest; there is a strong pipeline and everybody wants to replicate the success of Seplat.

On the next wave of listing expected in the market, he said: “On a standalone basis, there is still great opportunity for companies and sectors that are not well represented in the market like the telecom companies, a number of utility companies and a lot of government companies that we are putting a lot of efforts into seeing that they are privatized. So, are the areas that we think that we could see more action in the mid-term.

Source:© Copyright leadership Online

The Managing Director/Chief Executive, Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), Alhaji Umaru Ibrahim has disclosed that the total deposit liabilities of all the deposit money banks (DMBs) in the country amounted to N17.3 trillion as at December 2015.

He also stated that of the total amount, which had 67 million depositors tied to it, the corporation had provided over 90 percent of insurance coverage.

Speaking in Jos, during a lecture titled: "NDIC and Engendering Confidence in the Financial Services Sector for Poverty Reduction and Economic empowerment" which was organised for participants of Executive Course No 38, 2016 at National Institute for Policy & Strategic Studies Kuru, he also said a total of N165.5 billion which belonged to 8.4 million depositors of microfinance banks (MFBs) as well as N73.71 billion linked to 0.73 million depositors of primary mortgage banks (PMBs) were further covered by over 95 percent.

He noted that by these interventions, among others, the corporation had contributed to poverty reduction as it focused on deposit guarantee and protection of depositors' interest.

Furthermore, the NDIC boss has hinted that the corporation is currently considering the introduction of electronic deposit payment system to facilitate depositor pay-out within the shortest possible time.

The NDIC boss also suggested the re-establishment of Nigeria Savings Bank to expand the frontiers banking system in the country.

He said the desire to effectively use post offices and leveraging information and communication technology (ICT) to facilitate financial intermediation would not only mobilise savings but also give access to credits.

He drew the attention to Britain which in the last decade transformed its post offices into elegant avenues of harnessing savings and credits creation, adding: "Since we are talking of poverty alleviation, we can revisit the issue of National Savings Bank."

Ibrahim however, noted that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Ministry of Communication had been discussing modalities for effective transformation of post offices so as to serve as banks' agents.

In a statement signed by Head, Communication and Public Affairs Department, NDIC, Alhaji Hadi Birchi, the NDIC chief executive reminded the participants that Deposit Insurance Scheme (DIS) was one of the critical components of Financial System Safety-Net arrangement and financial guarantee to depositors, particularly the small depositors in the event of a bank failure. He pointed out that any financial system that did not have a DIS could not be said to have a complete Financial Safety-Net arrangement.

Source:© Copyright Thisday Online

Shareholders of Dangote Refinery Plc. on Wednesday approved the N6 billion dividend proposed by the board for the year ended December 31, 2015. The dividend, which translated to 50 kobo per share, was approved at the 10th annual general meeting (AGM) held in Lagos.

The dividend is 48 per cent of the profit after tax (PAT) recorded for the year. The shareholders commended DSR for the performance and dividend payment despite the challenges in the operating environment.

For instance, the Chairman, Progressive Shareholders Association of Nigeria (PSAN) Boniface Okezie described the management of the company as having foresight and making giant strides in back integration. According to him, DSR has remained the foremost sugar refinery in Nigeria and continued to add value to shareholders.

Speaking in the same vein, another shareholder, Mr. Patrick Ajudua, noted that DSR has continued to sustain its production despite economic challenges in the country.

Addressing the shareholders, Chairman of DSR, Alhaji Aliko Dangote said 2015 was a very challenging year as the political transition and economic slowdown impacted consumer spending and the global oversupply of crude oil weakened the naira, leaving an average Nigerian consumer with less purchasing power than in the past three to four years.

"In spite of this we achieved a Group turnover of N101 billion in 2015, seven per cent higher than the turnover of N95 billion in 2014. Profit before tax NPBT) stood at N16 billion and Profit after tax at N15 billion. Our earnings before interest tax depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose to N21 billion compared to N18 billion in the previous year," he said.

According to him, DSR remains committed to delivering superior returns to its shareholders hence the board recommended a total dividend pay-out of N6 billion.

Speaking on the future prospects, the acting Managing Director of DSR, Abdullahi Sule said 2016 commenced on a good footing as the company continued to increase its market share and implementing various initiatives and projects towards the actualisation of its target within the next five years.

"Achievement of the backward integration projects (BIP) targets remains our priority, and this will eliminate our reliance on foreign exchange as well as volatility of raw sugar prices, the highest single driver of our production cost," Sule said.

Source:© Copyright Thisday Online

The pangs of the several production halts may have continued to assail Nigeria's economy, as the Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC) has shut crude oil production from its Brass River facility.

This is coming on the heels of Angola taking over from Nigeria as the highest oil producing nation in Africa.

The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) latest monthly report revealed that Nigeria's oil production fell by 67,000 barrels per day (bpd) in March.

The low production level being recorded by the country may not be unconnected with the production halts at Brass River coupled with the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC's) operated Forcados export terminal that was shut in February this year.

Forcados, which has the capacity to export about 400,000 barrels per day (bpd), was scheduled to export some 249,000 barrels bpd in February and March, but the constraints to repair works on the vandalised pipeline have dashed the hope of further export through the lines in the last few months.

However, there were indications that the repair works on the pipeline feeding Forcados crude oil to the export terminal may last till June.

Agip reportedly declared a force majeure on the Brass River grade of crude oil, after a fire was detected on the pipeline that lifts crude to the terminal.

About 142,000 bpd of Brass River was due to be exported in May according to a loading programme.

According to the OPEC report, Nigeria produced 1.677 million bpd in March, down from 1.744 million barrels in February, while Angola oil output rose from 1.767 million bpd to 1.782 million in the same period.

This is the second time in four months that Angola would overtake Nigeria's crude oil production level.

OPEC has reviewed the estimates for 2016 world oil demand lower by 50,000 bpd, to a total of 1.20 million bpd of projected oil demand growth for the year.

According to the report, the forecast for 2016 is subject to many uncertainties, mainly the pace of economic growth in major oil demand centres, the removal of subsidies in oil-producing countries, mild weather in the Northern Hemisphere and the diverse effects of oil prices in different regions.

Non-OPEC members' supply for 2016 was however forecast to contract by 0.73 million bpd, indicating downward revision by 30,000 bpd, compared with an average of 56.39 million bpd projected a month earlier.

The main reason for this downward revision was lower expectations for crude oil production from China's onshore mature fields in the year. Moreover, further declines are expected to come from the United States, United Kingdom, and Colombia.

"Deferring of major new projects due to reduced cash flow in 2016 following the fall in global oil prices has been the main reason for a contraction in the current year. Global upstream investments, particularly in high-cost regions, remain suspended until a sustained price recovery can be maintained," it stated.

Source:© Copyright Guardian Online

Shareholders of Transcorp Hotels Plc have approved its expansion programme to build new properties in Lagos and Port Harcourt and effect upgrade to the Trancorp Hilton Abuja.

The investors further approved the sum of N2.81 billion as dividend, which translated to 40 kobo per share for the 2015 financial year.

Speaking in Abuja during its 2nd Annual General Meeting (AGM), Chairman, Transcorp Plc, Olorogun O’tega Emerhor said the company grew by 20 per cent from N4.5 billion in 2014 to N5.4billion in 2015 while its total assets increased by 30 per cent from N70 billion to N91 billion within the period under review.

The company also recorded a profit after tax of N3.6 billion in 2015 compared to N3.3 billion in the previous year.

He said: “I strongly believe that we will continue to enjoy growth across all our business lines. We have demonstrated our capabilities across products, customer segments and markets. We intend to continue to leverage on this solid platform to achieve our aspirations and deliver value to all our stakeholders.

“The confidence of you the shareholders has been a considerable source of strength for us at Transcorp Hotels Plc. As we step into a new phase of vitality, we continue to rely on this support and confidence.”

Also speaking at the AGM, Managing Director/Chief Executive, Transcorp Hotels, Abuja, Mr. Valentine Ozigbo said the company increase profitability “despite the negative economic fluctuations during the financial year.”

According to him: “The results in the fiscal year 2015 were possible due to efficiency, hard work and resilience of our team members which are hallmarks of our corporate culture.”

He said: “We were recognized globally by the World Travelers Award, winning five awards for the second year consecutively, and adjudged the best case study for the Kaizen Institute West Africa in August 2015.

“We consolidated on our excellent service ratings and won national, regional and international awards and look forward to steady progress in our new expansions and new ventures. All of these could not have been possible without the support of our dear shareholders, bondholders and our entire stakeholders.”

The shareholders also commended the management for the significant improvement in its financial performance as well as offering a dividend in the face of difficult operating environment.

They further hailed the company for successfully issuing its corporate bond following necessary regulatory approvals.

They also applauded the management for being named the best leading business hotel in Africa by the prestigious World Travel Awards.