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Tag: lockdown

Ramaphosa extends lockdown level 3 in South Africa – with some changes to restrictions

Ramaphosa extends lockdown level 3 in South Africa – with some changes to restrictions

Business
President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced the extension of South Africa’s adjusted level 3 lockdown, with some changes to the current restrictions. In a media briefing on Monday evening (11 January), the president said that the pandemic in South Africa is now at its most ‘devastating’, with the number of new cases, deaths and hospital admissions now at the highest point since the coronavirus was first detected in the country in March 2020. More than 1.2 million cases have been reported in the country to date, with over 33,000 deaths. Since the start of the new year, 190,000 new cases have been reported, alongside 4,600 deaths. More than 15,000 South Africans are currently in hospital, with approximately a third of these patients on oxygen support. As a proportion of the populatio...
European gas faces more winter price weakness

European gas faces more winter price weakness

Economy
The impact of further pandemic lockdowns is compounding an already bearish outlook The benchmark Dutch TTF price recovered strongly in the third quarter of 2020 and has largely held onto those gains for now. But analysts warn that Europe could still see another winter of low gas prices, particularly given the risk posed by further lockdowns to tackle new waves of Covid-19 infections ahead of any widespread rollout of vaccination programmes. Gas demand in Europe recovered in June and through the third quarter, after falling by over 11pc—or 10bn m³—between early March and end of May, mainly due to drops in industrial and power generation requirements, Gergely Molnar, a gas analyst at the IEA, told Petroleum Economist’s LNG-to-Power Emea forum in early November. Industrial gas demand...
Pantami projects 21 per cent digital economy by 2021

Pantami projects 21 per cent digital economy by 2021

Economy
The Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Pantami, has projected that Nigeria’s economy would go 21 per cent digital by 2021, as digitalisation is becoming the most adopted economy globally. According to him, the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic brought to light the importance of the digital economy in the growth of any nation, noting that it also underscored the need to fast track digital transformation in Nigeria. Speaking at the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria’s (CIBN) 2020 Graduates’ Induction and Prize Award’s Day, held virtually at the weekend, Pantami said the digital economy drive is focused on four key areas – digital identification, broadband penetration, smartphones, and bank accounts. While stressing the need for professionals to develop more i...
Pruning of daily flights to Lagos, Abuja airports stirs angst

Pruning of daily flights to Lagos, Abuja airports stirs angst

Aviation
Federal Government’s plan to reopen the international airspace amid restricted traffic flow and four daily flights each at Lagos and Abuja airports has stirred worry in the industry. The situation is made worrisome, as no measure had been spelt out to determining the lucky eight from a pool of over 20 operators raring to resume operations from this month end. Though the Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, had said the restriction was for a short time, The Guardian has, however, learnt that the development might not be unconnected with an alleged plot to draw airlines and air traffic to Abuja. Besides, the COVID-19 medical response team in Lagos is wary of the new travel protocols for arriving travellers. They are worried that in a bid to make travelling more friendly, the relaxed g...
Nigeria benefits from $1.87 million COVID-19 impact support

Nigeria benefits from $1.87 million COVID-19 impact support

Business
Nigeria is one of 12 countries across Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) receiving a share of a 3M grant totalling $1,875,000, being directed to projects supporting nutrition, mental and physical health, education and COVID-19 awareness, according to the most pressing local needs and country status of the pandemic. Specifically, United Way Greater Nigeria, the local UW organisation, is working with 3M Nigeria to implement a $160,009  COVID-19 relief programme to support communities in the five administrative zones in Lagos State that have been identified at risk for a total of 10,000 beneficiaries. This includes support in the form of food distribution and packaging in collaboration with local partners including the government, NGO’s and religious organisations. Science-bas...
Weakening demand, rising supply weigh crude futures

Weakening demand, rising supply weigh crude futures

Energy
Weakening demand due to anticipated second wave of the coronavirus pandemic and rising supply have continued to weigh on market sentiment, dampening crude futures. Oil prices opened lower on Monday with Brent Crude dropping by 0.94 per cent to $43.11, while WTI Crude traded at $39.75, dropping by 1.29 per cent. Nigeria’s Bonny Light however traded higher, recording 1.43 per cent rise to $43.23 per barrel. The unabated COVID-19 spread and rising fatalities worldwide, continue to be the most significant issue capping oil demand recovery. The global case count stands at 17.97 million, with total deaths at 687,067, according to the latest data from the John Hopkins University. Recently, it became evident that oil demand recovery wouldn’t be as anticipated, as the recent resurgence...
Economists worry about rising inflation, unemployment as rates stagnate

Economists worry about rising inflation, unemployment as rates stagnate

Economy
With the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) retaining the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) and other key rates, economists and analysts have urged the apex bank not to lose sight of rising inflation and unemployment. Indeed, the monetary authorities are caught between dealing with the expected negative gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the second and third quarters, as well as rising inflation that has put consumers on the edge and pressure on currency in circulation. While inflation uncertainty has become a growing concern for investors, savers and consumers alike, the need to the GDP to counter the rise in jobless rate may have put authorities on the ledge, thus making a choice to retain rates and observe trends. The MPC held the Monetary Po...
FIC Markets’ Turnover Tumbles by 35% in April

FIC Markets’ Turnover Tumbles by 35% in April

Capital Market
The Fixed Income and Currency (FIC) markets felt the impact of the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic in the month of April as investors reduced their business transactions on the FMDQ platform to the tune of about 35 percent as turnover dropped by N8.96trillion. Turnover in the review month stood at N16.7trillion compared to N25.66trillion recorded in the same period of March. The FMDQ has attributed the general decrease in market activities to the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated exit by foreign portfolio investors, as well as the lockdown directive to curb the spread of the virus. Meanwhile, the market recorded a year-on-year (YoY) increase of 2.02 per cent (N0.33trillion) from the turnover recorded in April 2019 (N16.37trillion) as Foreign Exchange (FX) and OMO bills remained t...