FOLLOW THE MONEY: Zenith, Guinness results looking good as AfDB plans to feed Africa

Summary of news that moved the markets.

So things are looking good for Zenith Bank and Guinness Nigeria Plc. as they all reported impressive profitability growth in the period under review.
Total Energies joins the bandwagon for IOCs divesting from Nigeria, India imports oil from Russia, AfDB to support Nigeria for food production as economic fallout looms due to the Russia-Ukraine war, and more.
Let’s dive right into it.

Profit Increase For Zenith Bank Plc

Nigerian leading lender, Zenith Bank Plc, has released its Q1 2022 financial result, reporting a profit of N58.20 billion in Q1 2022, revealing a 9.68% increase year on year.
Zenith Bank’s profit performance is on the back of margin growth as income from interest, trading income and fees and commission income all appreciated year on year.

Guinness Nigeria Plc Releases Profits Despite Inflation

The 9-month financial result released by Guinness in March 2022, has revealed a profit of N15.28 billion representing a 731.23% increase from the prior-year period, as revenue grew by 38.70%.
Guinness has witnessed a turn of fortune since last year, following increases in sales.

NNPC, FIRS, Others Generated N28Tr For Nigeria In 2017 to 2019

Four (4) Federal Government agencies earned N28.02 trillion between 2017 and 2019, NEITI reveals.
These are the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd. (NNPC); Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS); Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) now Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) and the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development (MMSD).

Public Holidays declared

The Federal Government declared Monday and Tuesday as public holidays to celebrate workers’ day and Eid-el-Fitr celebrations respectively. However, workers in Lagos were confused as they had thought Wednesday was also added as Public Holiday.
It would be recalled that yesterday, the Federal Government via a statement signed by the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola declared only Monday 2nd and Tuesday 3rd of May as public holidays to make the two events.
However, another statement emerged allegedly from the Lagos State Government declaring Monday 2, Tuesday 3, and Wednesday 4 of May as public holidays. The statement dated 27th of April and titled, “The Year 2022 Workers’ Day celebration/Id-el-Fitr Public Holidays” is signed by Hakeem Muri-Okunnola, Head of Service.

Total Energies Divestment

French Energy giant, TotalEnergies has joined similar IOCs like Shell and ExxonMobil to divest from their Nigerian oil assets.
The stakes will be sold in an onshore oil production joint venture in Nigeria.
This was made known by the Chief Executive Officer of Total Energies, Patrick Pouyanne, at an earnings conference call on Thursday, where he said that the French oil firm will put up for sale its 10% interest in a company operating 20 licenses onshore Nigeria.

Lagos State Government Demolishes structures under Apolgbon Bridge

The Lagos State Government on Friday demolished shops and other structures constructed under the burnt Apongbon Bridge, in Lagos Island.
This is coming barely 5 days after the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, issued a 3-day ultimatum to those traders to vacate the area or risk demolition of their space with their goods.
Apparently, security officials were assembled at the foot of the burnt bridge in their patrol vehicles, monitoring the demolition of the shops and other structures, with other shop owners and traders in the shops across the road from the bridge not allowed to open for business.
Recall that earlier on March 23, the Apongbon Bridge was razed by fire on March 23 due to the activities of the traders, leading the state government to temporarily shut Eko Bridge and issue an eviction notice to traders with shops under the burnt bridge.

Russia Offers India Payment for Oil in Rupees and Rubles

Russia plans to offer India a dual-payment method to facilitate more transactions in local currencies as pressure rises on the sanctioned country over its war in Ukraine.
Moscow, Russia’s capital would accept payments in dollars or euros for Indian oil imports from Russia, while the remainder will be settled in rupees and rubles.

Gold Set For Worst Drop

The yellow metal is bullish at the start of the London session as a result of worrying U.S. GDP data, which drove some investors toward the safe-haven asset.
Despite this, gold is set for its biggest monthly drop since September 2021 as the US Federal Reserve is widely expected to aggressively hike interest rates when it hands down its policy decision in the following week.

Bullish Black Liquid

The black liquid is bullish at the start of the London trading session on Friday but ongoing COVID-19 lockdowns have dampened fuel demand in China ahead of a long holiday.
However, supply disruption fears as Western sanctions impact crude and product exports from Russia underpinned prices.

Russia-Ukraine War: AfDB’s $1.5 Billion Emergency Food Production Plan for Nigeria, Africa

The economic fallout of the Russia-Ukraine war has pushed the African Development Bank (AfDB) to devise a $1.5 billion Africa Emergency Food Production Plan.
The plan is set to support the country’s 5 million small farmers during the wet season of 2022. Implementation is set for May 2022.

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