Zenith Bank, fresh from shareholder approval for its transition to a holding company structure, aims to receive shareholder approval for the raising of additional capital through a planned issuance of 31.3 billion new shares. The National Bureau of Statistics will be releasing its data on the Nigeria Electricity Report for the first quarter of 2024.
The National Bureau of Statistics will release the Nigeria Electricity Report for the first quarter of 2024.
The report will detail energy bills, revenue generated, and customers served by DisCos in the first three months of 2024.
Q: “Shareholders approved that each existing GDR holder receive, as consideration for each existing GDR held, one new HoldCo GDR.”
According to NBS, the total customer numbers in Q4 2023 stood at 12.12 million, up from 11.71 million in Q3 2023, showing an increase of 3.46 percent.
Similarly, metered customers stood at 5.61 million in Q4 2023, indicating a decrease in the growth rate of 1.32 percent from 5.68 million recorded in the preceding quarter.
In addition, estimated customers during the quarter were 5.83 million, showing a decrease of 3.34 percent from 6.03 million in Q3 2023.
Revenue collected by the DISCOs during the period was N294.95 billion, up from N260.16 billion in Q3 2023. Electricity supply was 6,432. GWh in Q4 2023, up from 5,732 GWh in the previous quarter.
BusinessDay reported that with a revenue of N294.95 billion in the fourth quarter of 2023, the 11 DisCos in Nigeria have amassed a cumulative total of N1.07 trillion for the full year.
Wednesday, May 8:
Zenith 33rd Annual General Meeting
Zenith Bank Plc will be holding its 33rd Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Wednesday in Lagos.
Last week, a court-ordered Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) was held virtually where shareholders of Zenith Bank Plc approved the restructuring of the bank to a holding company.
They will transfer their shares in Zenith Bank to HoldCo. In return, shareholders will receive the same number of shares in HoldCo as they have in Zenith Bank.
Shareholders approved that each existing GDR holder receive, as consideration for each existing GDR held, one new HoldCo GDR.
The shareholders equally approved that all of the shares held by the nominees of the bank in Zenpay Limited, a direct subsidiary of the HoldCo, together with all rights and liabilities attached to such shares, be transferred to the HoldCo.
Also in a notice ahead of its AGM, Zenith Bank Plc mentioned its plans to create 31.3 billion new shares, aiming to raise additional capital.
May 9:
Nigeria Gross Domestic Product Report (Expenditure and Income Approach) Q3 and Q4 2023
The National Bureau of Statistics will be releasing the Nigeria Gross Domestic Product Report (GDP) (Expenditure and Income Approach) for the third and fourth quarters of 2023.
According to the NBS, Africa’s biggest economy saw its GDP at basic prices grow by 2.31 and 2.51 percent in the first and second quarters of 2023.
However, the figure showed a lower growth rate when compared to the corresponding quarter of 2022, which stood at 3.11 percent.
Also, in comparison with the first and second quarters of 2022, the performances in 2023 indicate a decrease of 0.80 percent. In the Q1 of 2023 growth rate and a fall of 1.03 percent points in Q2 of 2023.
Accordingly, the report stated that in the first and second quarters of 2023, household consumption expenditure decreased by 24.95 percent and 3.30 percent in real terms, respectively, year-on-year.
The growth rates in Q1 and Q2 of 2023 were lower than those recorded in Q1 of 2022 and higher than in Q2 of 2022.
May 10:
Full-year 2023 air transportation data
The National Bureau of Statistics will be releasing its air transportation data for the full year 2023 on Friday.
The air transportation data for a full year was last published in 2021.
The NBS disclosed in its latest Transport Fare Watch for February 2024 that airfare (single route) rose to N88,000.00 in February 2024 compared to N74,558.11 in the corresponding month last year.
Meanwhile, NBS said that the average fare paid by air passengers on a month-on-month basis for specified routes on a single journey was N88,000.00 in February 2024, showing a decrease of 2.20 percent compared to the previous month (January 2024).
On a state-by-state analysis, Rivers State recorded the highest air transport charges (for specified routes and single journeys) at N100,000.00, followed by Kano State at N96,000.00.
Naira to moderate at 1,400 per dollar
The naira fell to 1,419.11 per dollar last Monday, the lowest since March 2024 at the official foreign exchange (FX) market, as foreign portfolio inflows slowed.
The naira also closed flat at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) as the dollar was quoted at N1,402.67 on Thursday compared to N1,390.96 closed on Tuesday before the workers’ holiday, data from the FMDQ Securities Exchange Limited indicated.
The NAFEM window witnessed notable shifts in currency values. On Thursday, the intraday high closed at N1,445, reflecting a slight decline from Tuesday’s figure of N1,450. Meanwhile, the intraday low experienced a more significant drop, falling from N1,200 on Tuesday to N1,299 on Thursday.
The naira also traded flat in the parallel market to N1,380/$, the same as Thursday. According to BDC operators who spoke with BusinessDay.
“Demand is very high, and the dollar is scarce in the market,” one trader told BusinessDay on Friday.
The trader said the demand was coming from individuals who needed dollars for business or personal travel, as well as importers.
The pressure on the naira has persisted despite various measures put in place by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to boost liquidity in the foreign exchange (FX) market.
April saw the naira emerge as the best-performing currency globally, supported by bullish sentiment from leading international investment institutions.
“Our FX market is experiencing robust activity, with turnover reaching levels not seen in over seven years. This liquidity boost instills confidence among investors, businesses, and other partners, ensuring fluidity in their interactions with Nigeria’s FX markets,” Olayemi Cardoso, governor of the CBN, said last month.
