Redesigned naira notes: Many ATMs now dispense new notes in Lagos
An investigation carried out by the Central Bank of Nigeria revealed that some banks’ ATMs on Lagos Island now dispense the new naira notes. This exercise was carried out to examine the level of compliance as the deadline to stop collecting and dispensing the old notes draws nearer.
The apex bank had given a directive to banks to stop paying the new notes (N1,000, N500, and N200) over the counter so as to enable customers to have access to the new notes even when banking halls are closed for business.
Twelve days before the deadline after which the old notes will cease to be legal tender, the apex bank’s team, which visited some banks around Tinubu Square, expressed satisfaction at the level of compliance.
Read also: CBN to sanction banks over failure to load ATMs with new naira notes
AEDC attributes drop in power supply to insufficient load allocation
The Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) has associated the drop in power supply in its franchise areas with insufficient load allocation.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria, AEDC’s management issued a statement on Thursday saying that the company was aware of the drop in power supply across its franchise areas.
AEDC said that the insufficient load allocation had compelled the company to load-shed power temporarily across different areas.
“While we sincerely regret the inconvenience caused, we appeal for your patience as we collaborate with all our stakeholders to ensure the power supply is improved and stabilises soonest,” it said.
4 ships with petrol waiting to berth at Lagos ports
In an effort to deal with the lingering fuel scarcity problem, the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) said on Thursday that four out of the six ships that had arrived at Lagos ports were waiting to berth with petrol.
It added that the remaining two ships were carrying base oil.
The NPA also added that 23 other ships also laden with petroleum products, food items, and other goods are expected at the Lagos Port Complex from Jan. 19 to Feb. 1.
The port authority said that the ships contained general cargo, bulk gypsum, containers, bulk urea, and base.
Japan’s consumer inflation hits fresh 41-year high, keep BOJ in focus
According to Reuters, Japan’s core consumer prices in December rose 4 percent from a year earlier, double the central bank’s 2 percent target, hitting a fresh 41-year high and keeping alive market expectations that the central bank could phase out ultra-low interest rates.
However, the uncertainty surrounding wage increases to offset the hit to consumption from rising living costs still divides most analysts’ opinions on whether the Bank of Japan will raise rates higher this year.
“Companies aren’t that cautious about raising prices any more. We might see inflation stay above the BOJ’s 2 percent target well into autumn this year,” said Yoshiki Shinke, chief economist at the Dai-ichi Life Research Institute.
“But wages are key. If inflation stays around 2% and Japan sees significant wage hikes, the BOJ could normalise monetary policy. If it deems the pace of the wage hike insufficient, there’s an equal chance it will stand pat,” he said.
Netflix CEO Reed Hastings steps down as streaming giant reports positive fourth quarter results
Netflix shares reacted positively to a round of news on Thursday after its financial report and the stepping down of its chairman, Reed Hastings, were announced.
The movie streaming company’s shares rose more than 5 percent in after-hours trading on Thursday after the company reported mixed fourth-quarter results, including subscription growth that topped expectations but earnings per share (EPS) that fell short. This is according to proactive investors.
Reed Hastings, who co-founded the company in 1997, will be taking up the job of executive chairman. Greg Peters has stepped up from chief operating officer to become Ted Sarandos’ co-CEO, it said.
Details from the financial report showed that its revenue for the quarter went up to $7.85 billion, which is 1.9 percent higher than what most analysts had predicted in the year before.
Netflix also reported an increase in additional subscribers as it added 7.7 million new subscribers in the fourth quarter, far exceeding the forecast of 4.5 million. This brings its total subscriber base to 231 million.
