Business
Trapped Funds: British Airways Blocks Travel Agents From Paying In Naira, Mulls Flight Suspension
As the issue of trapped $464m foreign airlines’ funds lingers, British Airways may stop flying to Nigeria as from December 1, 2022.
The United Kingdom airline this morning closed inventory which means travel agents would not be able to issue fresh tickets for their clients, but individuals can buy tickets only online, only in dollars.
The decision, according to BA, was to mitigate the effect of blocked funds as foreign airlines plan to take drastic action including suspension of flights to pressure the Federal Government to release their funds.
Already, Emirates Airlines will suspend flight by September 1 over the same issue as the UAE carrier has over $85m trapped in Nigeria.
The National Executive Council of the National Association of Nigerian Travel Agencies (NANTA) confirmed the development with regards to British Airways.
The Association advised its members not to issue or pay for tickets beyond December following the new development and deadline issued to Nigerian government by BA.
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The NANTA memo read: “The National Executive Council of NANTA just concluded a business meeting with British Airways and British Airways conveys assurance that it remains committed to servicing the needs of travel agencies in Nigeria.
“As members may be aware that British Airways closed inventory this morning, please be informed that, this inventory closure is a necessary action taken by British Airways to mitigate increase of their trapped funds.
“However, British Airways provides reassurance that it is still flying in and out of Nigeria and is currently seeking earnest solutions to adress the demands of its customers.”
In another development, another communication to the travel agents revealed that tickets can only be issued online with payment made in dollars.
“The above message is the new development with regards to British airways. Tickets will be issued in USD henceforth and only online.
“They have also given the Nigerian government a deadline in December. By which time if payment isn’t made, they will stop all flights into and out of Nigeria.
“Please do not pay for or issue tickets beyond December. We will update you as soon as we receive any new developments,” the communication read.
Daily Trust
Business
PH refinery: 200 trucks will load petroleum products daily, says Presidency
PH refinery: 200 trucks will load petroleum products daily, says Presidency
No fewer than 200 trucks are set to load petroleum products at the government-owned Port Harcourt Refinery, the presidency has said.
A presidential spokesperson, Sunday Dare, made this known in a statement through his official X handle on Tuesday.
Newstrends had reported that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company on Tuesday announced that Port Harcourt Refinery has resumed operations and crude oil processing after years of inactivity.
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Reacting, Dare said, “200 trucks are expected to load products daily from the refinery, Renewing the Hopes of Nigeria.”
He added that “the Port Harcourt refinery has two wings.
“The Old Refinery comes on stream today with an installed production capacity of 60, 000 barrels per day of crude oil.”
PH refinery: 200 trucks will load petroleum products daily, says Presidency
Business
Breaking: CBN increases interest rate to 27.50%
Breaking: CBN increases interest rate to 27.50%
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has raised the lending interest to 27.50 per cent from 27.25 per cent.
This latest increase in the Monetary Policy Rate came after a meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Monday and concluded Tuesday.
The Monetary Policy Rate measures the benchmark interest rate.
The CBN Governor, Yemi Cardoso, announced this in Abuja on Tuesday after the MPC meeting, last for the year, held at the apex bank’s headquarters.
He said the MPC voted unanimously to raise the MPR by 25 basis points from 27.25% to 27.50%; and retain the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) at 50% for Deposit Money Banks and 16% for Merchant Banks.
The CBN governor also said the MPC retained the Liquidity Ratio (LR) at 30% and Asymmetric Corridor at +500/-100 basis points around the MPR.
Business
Nigeria’s unemployment rate dropped to 4.3% in Q2 – NBS
Nigeria’s unemployment rate dropped to 4.3% in Q2 – NBS
Nigeria’s unemployment rate stood at 4.3 per cent in the second quarter of 2024, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has said in its latest report.
The report released on Monday said the unemployment rate decreased compared to the 5.3 per cent recorded in the Q1 of 2024.
The NBS defined the unemployment rate as the share of the labour force (the combination of unemployed and employed people) who are not employed but actively searching and are available for work.
“The unemployment rate for Q2 2024 was 4.3%, showing an increase of 0.1 percentage point compared to the same period last year,” the report stated.
“The unemployment rate among males was 3.4% and 5.1% among females.
“By place of residence, the unemployment rate was 5.2% in urban areas and 2.8% in rural areas. Youth unemployment rate was 6.5% in Q2 2024, showing a decrease from 8.4% in Q1 2024.”
Report also said the unemployment rate among persons with post-secondary education was 4.8 per cent; 8.5 per cent among those with upper secondary education, 5.8 per cent for those with lower secondary education, and 2.8 per cent among those with primary education in Q2 2024.
Employment rate – 76%
The report showed that the employment-to-population ratio, which measures the number of employed workers against the total working-age population, increased to 76.1 per cent in Q2 2024.
“In Q2 2024, 76.1% of Nigeria’s working-age population was employed, up from 73.1% in Q1 2024,” the report stated.
Self-employment – 85.6%
The report further showed that Nigeria’s labour market saw a notable shift as the proportion of self-employed individuals increased in Q2 2024.
It stated, “The proportion of persons in self-employment in Q2 2024 was 85.6%.”
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