The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Tuesday intervened in the inter-bank market to the tune of 482.6 million dollars in the first trading day after the Democracy Day celebrations. A statement issued by its Acting Director, Corporate Communications, Mr Isaac Okorafor in Abuja said that this was part of measures to underline its determination to guard the international value of the naira. Okorafor said that a breakdown of the intervention indicates that the retail Secondary Market Intervention Sales (SMIS) was allocated 285.7 million dollars, while the 100 million dollar was offered in the Wholesale SMIS auction window. The Small…
Author: David Folami
English champions Chelsea begin the 2017-18 season with a home game against Burnley before being the first team to face Tottenham at Wembley in the Premier League. In the other opening-day fixtures, Manchester United host West Ham, Manchester City travel to newly promoted Brighton, Liverpool face Watford and Spurs are at Newcastle. Huddersfield, whose last season in the top-flight was 1971-72, play Crystal Palace. Of the other standout fixtures for Antonio Conte’s side, Chelsea play Arsenal on Sept. 16, host City on Sept. 30 before United visit Stamford Bridge on Nov. 4. On Boxing Day, Chelsea are at home to…
Kylian Mbappe will take time to “sort through” the options he has while on holiday with his family this summer as the highly prized Monaco striker ponders the next step in his flourishing career. A source tod us last week that two clubs had made bids of more than €100 million for the 18-year-old, whose stunning displays in Monaco’s Ligue 1 title win and run to the semifinals of the Champions League have sparked strong interest from Europe’s biggest clubs. Real Madrid, Arsenal and Liverpool have all been linked with the teenage prodigy, who only signed his first professional contract…
Alvaro Morata to Manchester United: 70 percent While Milan did all they could to sign the Real Madrid striker, they have signed Andre Silva instead, paving the way for Manchester United to close the deal for Morata. After Kylian Mbappe made it clear his preference is Real Madrid, United manager Jose Mourinho made signing Morata the priority. The fact that Mourinho can offer Morata a starting role the year before the World Cup makes the destination even more appealing for the Spain international. Real Madrid will look to get a big return on the deal to reinvest in a potential…
As Katy Perry sings, “they know what is what.” We knew it was a major moment when the Grammy nominee took the stage Monday night for a Witness fan concert presented exclusively by YouTube in downtown Los Angeles—the finale to a four-day “Witness World Wide” livestream. Soon, it was time to perform her controversial hit, “Swish Swish,” which is rumored to be about Taylor Swift , with whom she’s been feuding for years. While she’s repeatedly denied the track is about the “Shake It Off” singer in particular, she made a notable change to her lyrics Monday night that gave…
A woman picked to go to an Adele concert over her best friend’s wedding and it’s divided the internet. The woman – who didn’t want to be identified – wrote about the incident on Mumsnet. She revealed that she’d scheduled her wedding date three years earlier and that she’d been friends with the concert goer for over 30 years but when her friend was offered a free ticket to see Adele she chose to attend the concert. The women asked users of the site for their opinion on what to do. She said that she was hurt but wanted to…
British musician Passenger (Michael David Rosenberg) recorded his latest album Young as the Morning, Old as the Sea, in New Zealand. Mike Rosenberg’s new album – currently rating no2 on the iTunes chart – could only have been made in New Zealand. The English singer-songwriter, who performs under the moniker Passenger, recorded his latest LP at Auckland’s Roundhead Studios. And the album, called Young as the Morning, Old as the Sea, was partly inspired by New Zealand’s landscapes. Rosenberg, a school friend of Ed Sheeran’s, shot to fame when his song Let Her Go took off. It was 2013’s biggest-selling…
Beyonce fans sparked a Twitter frenzy amid fevered speculation the heavily pregnant star is finally in labor on Tuesday. Heavy security was spotted at a Los Angeles hospital, while it was also reported her security staff were carrying two baby seats to a medical facility earlier in the day. The 35-year-old is due to give birth to her twins any time soon, which will increase the size of her brood with husband Jay Z to three. An insider told Hollywood Life: ‘Beyonce’s security was seen leaving her Beverly Hills home this morning carrying two baby seats to a hospital in…
In today’s episode of “Where’s Remy Ma’s Chill?” the Bronx MC came for all of Nicki Minaj’s edges when she delivered a “f–k you” echoed throughout MetLife Stadium. Yep, she had Nicki’s face screen up on that Summer Jam screen when Remy unapologetically performed her diss track, “Shether.” Over the weekend, Summer Jam went down and so many great performers had Jersey super lit. In her set with with the other half of Terror Squad, Fat Joe, Remy Ma delivered a nostalgic performance, getting the audience hyped with records like, “Whatever” and more recent hits like, “All the Way Up.”…
Several acts have been added to the slate of artists set to perform at the BET Awards. Billboard reports that the latest performers include Lil Wayne, DJ Khaled, Chris Brown, Big Sean, Post Malone, Jessie Reyez, Roman Gianarthur, and New Edition. The latter is receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award from the network. In May, it was announced that Migos, Bruno Mars, and Future will be performing at BET’s annual awards show on June 25. Comedian Leslie Jones will be hosting the ceremony. Beyoncé leads the pack of nominees with seven nominations for Lemonade. Chance the Rapper, who has four nominations,…
Two rights activists on Monday praised the senate for its plan to address the high interest rates in the country. The activists told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the intervention would stimulate local production and strengthen Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). Senate President Bukola Saraki had on Saturday in Ilorin said that the upper legislative chamber was concerned about the high interests on loans. He said that lawmakers would invite the Central Bank of Nigeria to discuss the issue. Ms Sola Salako, President, Consumer Advocacy Foundation of Nigeria, said that intervention of the senate would boost…
A Lagos based business tycoon, Kazeem Eletu-Odibo, has advised the three tiers of government to invest in cottage industries in order to cushion the effects of the current economic recession on Nigerian youths. He gave the advice on Wednesday in Lagos in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN). He said that establishment of cottage industries would help to reduce the number of unemployed and under employed youths roaming the streets of the country. “It has become almost impossible to be quiet about the state of the economy and how it affects the average Nigerian, especially young people.”…
Relentless to achieve convergence of rates between the interbank and Bureau de Change segments of the foreign exchange market (FOREX), the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has injected another 190 million dollars into the market. The acting Director, Corporate Communications, CBN, Mr Isaac Okorafor, in a statement on Monday in Abuja, said 100 million dollars was offered as wholesale interventions and 50 million dollars was allocated to the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) FOREX window. He said that 40 million dollars was also allocated to accommodate customers requiring FOREX for business, Personal Travel Allowances, tuition and medical fees. Okorafor said…
Justice Hyeladzira Nganjiwa of the Federal High Court in Bayelsa scheduled to be arraigned in Lagos on Monday for alleged unlawful financial enrichment was stalled as a result of his absence in court. His lawyer, Mr Robert Clarke (SAN) told the court that Nganjiwa was absent because he could not get a flight from Bayelsa to Lagos. “Today’s absence is not deliberate, this is a sitting judge of a federal high court. He called me and said that he could not get a flight to Lagos,’’ he said. However, Clarke had opposed the arraignment of the judge before a Lagos…
A Kogi High Court sitting in Okene has remanded a former Commissioner for Agriculture in the state, Zacchaeus Atte, in prison custody over alleged financial impropriety of N35.5 million. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Atte was arraigned by the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related Offences Commission (ICPC) on an eight-count charge. The Judge, Justice Josiah Majebi, who gave the order, held that the bail application for the accused was not ripe for hearing. Earlier, the Prosecution led by John Okwor, told the court that the alleged offence was contrary to Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices…
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Monday intervened in the inter-bank Foreign Exchange market to the tune of 413.5 million dollars to further shore up the international value of the Naira. The CBN acting Director, Corporate Communications, Mr Isaac Okorafor, in a statement in Abuja, said the latest intervention underscores the apex bank’s resolve to sustain liquidity in the foreign exchange market. He said “The CBN offered the sum of 100 million dollars to dealers in the wholesale window, while the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) window was allocated a total of 28million dollars. “The invisibles segment was allocated…
Anthony Martial’s agent has said the forward has “no reason” to leave Manchester United despite finding himself on the fringes of the first team last season. Following his 2015 arrival from Monaco, Martial, 21, made 32 Premier League appearances in his maiden season in England — all but two of which were starts — while netting 11 times under Louis van Gaal to finish as United’s leading scorer. However, his progress was stunted following the arrival of Jose Mourinho last summer, the success of new signing Zlatan Ibrahimovic and the flourishing of Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard, all of which…
Manchester United will welcome new signing Victor Lindelof to the club’s Carrington training facilities for the first time on Wednesday as the Swede arrives to undergo a medical and finalise the details of his high profile move from Benfica. United announced news of a deal, believed to be worth £30m rising to £35m, on Saturday, subject to the aforementioned medical and personal terms. Lindelof was unavailable to take those final steps at the time as a result of international duty, but it is believed he began his journey to England after Tuesday’s 1-1 draw with Norway – a game which…
Manchester United are resisting offers for Matteo Darmian. TMW says United have turned down approaches from FOUR Serie A giants regarding Darmian. The 27-year-old, who has two years left on his current Red Devils deal, has been linked with leaving the club for several months. A number of teams in Italy are known to be keen but it seems he could now stay put in England. Mourinho is not willing to let him leave and wants to keep the defender for next term. And it is said that United have already rebuffed Inter Milan, AC Milan, Roma and Napoli.
N’Golo Kante’s inability to claim a regular starting berth at international level sums up the strength in depth France have at their disposal, admits England manager Gareth Southgate. The midfielder won both the Players’ Player of the Year and Football Writers’ Association award after helping Chelsea land the Premier League title this season. The 26-year-old also starred for Leicester City in their remarkable run to the title last year, but Paul Pogba and Blaise Matuidi started ahead of him for France in last Friday’s World Cup qualifying defeat in Sweden. Southgate and England are in France for a friendly in…