The US is proposing a 5% tax on diaspora remittances
American lawmakers have introduced a draft bill that would add a 5 per cent tax on money sent to other countries, potentially hurting immigrant communities, including many Nigerians.
This proposal adds to President Donald Trump’s growing list of tough immigration and trade policies launched in recent months.
The tax would hit immigrant families hard, with Nigerians likely feeling a significant impact because Nigeria depends heavily on money sent home by citizens living abroad. The bill, now in the House of Representatives, targets payments that US residents make to people in foreign countries.
Oil prices rallied for four days
Oil prices have stabilised following their strongest four-day rise since October, driven by trade-war hopes and tougher US talk about Iranian oil exports.
West Texas Intermediate oil trades above $63 per barrel after climbing almost 10% over the previous four days, while Brent oil reached nearly $67.
During his Saudi Arabia visit, President Donald Trump warned that America will push hard against Iranian oil sales if Iran doesn’t agree to terms on its nuclear programme. This follows earlier US State Department sanctions against a network helping Iran sell oil to China.
These tough words on Iran added to an oil price recovery fuelled by lower-than-expected US inflation figures and improving relations between America and China. Though oil prices have bounced back from a four-year low hit last week, they remain over 10% down for the year.
Read Also: U.S proposes 5% levy on diaspora remittances; to affect Nigerians
IMF says Angola’s anti-corruption campaign is weakening
Angola’s fight against corruption has slowed down, risking the country’s economic future, the International Monetary Fund warned on Tuesday.
The IMF reported that this major African oil producer has stopped making progress on budget transparency, while important corruption investigations remain unfinished and public opinion polls show people believe corruption is growing.
“Moreover, notwithstanding some recent improvements in the legal framework, Angola was once again added to the Financial Action Task Force’s grey list of countries with anti-money laundering/countering terrorism financing weaknesses,” it said.
This report follows Angola’s discussions with the IMF last month about possible loans. As Africa’s third-largest oil producer, Angola currently struggles to borrow money from international markets because its borrowing costs have risen sharply due to trade conflicts and falling oil prices.
The US shared Wigwe’s helicopter crash report with Nigeria
The head of the Nigeria Safety and Investigation Bureau, Alex Badeh, said that American authorities have given Nigeria the report on the helicopter crash that killed Herbert Wigwe, the former boss of Access Holdings Plc.
Badeh mentioned this information just days after the US National Transportation Safety Board released findings about why the helicopter carrying prominent Nigerians crashed on 9 February 2024.
The Airbus EC130B4 helicopter, run by Orbic Air under official aviation regulations, went down near Halloran Springs, California.
Wigwe died in the crash along with his wife Doreen, their oldest son Chizi, and Abimbola Ogunbanjo, the former NGX Group Chairman. The two pilots also lost their lives in the accident.
The NSIB serves as Nigeria’s official government agency for investigating such incidents.
Women hold just 33% of formal jobs in Nigeria – McKinsey
A new study by global advisors McKinsey & Company reveals that women fill only one-third of formal jobs in Nigeria, highlighting gender imbalance in the country’s businesses.
McKinsey partner Mayowa Kuyoro, who helped write the report, shared these findings in a statement. The company presented the research at the Africa CEO Forum 2025 in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.
The report explains that women’s low numbers in Nigeria’s formal private sector mainly stem from poor recruitment at entry-level positions, rather than women leaving senior roles.
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