Business

UBA consolidates gains, gross earnings rise by 110%

Published

7 months ago

May 8, 2024

UBA consolidates gains, gross earnings rise by 110%

United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc recorded impressive growth across all major performance indicators in the first three months of the year with its gross earnings indicating a rise by 110 per cent.

An interim report of the bank for the first quarter ended March 31, 2024 released at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) also showed that its pre and post profits grew by 155 per cent and 165 per cent respectively.

Its gross earnings specifically doubled from N271.1 billion in first quarter 2023 to N570.2 billion in first quarter 2024.

The bank’s top-line performance was driven by strong growth in the core banking operations with interest income rising by 130 per cent to N440.7 billion.

Its operating income doubled by 115 per cent from N175.7 billion to N378.59 billion.

Its profit before tax jumped by 155 per cent from N61.7 billion in first quarter 2023 to N156.34 billion in first quarter 2024.

Profit after tax rose by 165 per cent from N53.5 billion to N142.5 billion.

The balance sheet of the bank further expanded within the three months as total assets grew by 23 per cent to N25.4 trillion in March 2024.

Customer deposits also rose by 23 per cent to close the period at N18.4 trillion, largely due to growth in current accounts and savings accounts.

UBA’s Group Managing Director, Oliver Alawuba, said the Group delivered a strong first quarter performance, building on the solid momentum of 2023, as well as the ongoing execution of its long-held strategy of customer focus, geographic diversification, and effective risk management and governance.

He said, “Our record Q1 profit before tax was delivered with triple-digit gross earnings growth, supported by very strong interest and non-interest income.

“Fees and Commissions rose by 118% year-on-year on the back of improved efficiencies and continued digital adoption.

“This has helped drive improvement in efficiency and customer satisfaction, with the Group’s cost-to-income ratio held at 57.8%.”

Also speaking on the performance, UBA’s Executive Director, Finance and Risk, Ugo Nwaghodoh, said, “Our first quarter results highlight our relentless customer focus and the strength of UBA’s geographic and product diversification, with good performance across all our regions.

“We continue to differentiate ourselves across all key financial metrics, with a keen focus on high-quality risk adjusted revenues and cost discipline, while maintaining very sound asset quality.”

Business

PH refinery: 200 trucks will load petroleum products daily, says Presidency

Published

6 hours ago

November 26, 2024

Trends Admin

Port Harcourt Refinery

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.

PH refinery: 200 trucks will load petroleum products daily, says Presidency

Business

Breaking: CBN increases interest rate to 27.50%

Published

7 hours ago

November 26, 2024

Trends Admin

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

Published

11 hours ago

November 26, 2024

Trends Admin

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%.”