According to South African lender FirstRand’s local unit, FNB Mozambique,

French oil major Total has secured $15.8 billion in funding for its massive liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in northern Mozambique.

In a press release published on Wednesday, FNB Mozambique said the financing contracts for Total’s blockbuster development had been signed on Friday. While this was widely reported in local media at the time, Total has not confirmed the signing.

It said FNB intends to enter other large natural gas projects in Mozambique, just as it entered into Total’s financing, in a consortium of 20 banking institutions that granted $15.8 billion, for which the last contracts were signed last Friday.

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The Federal Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Sealink Promotional Company Limited on the use of Ajaokuta jetty landing port.

It said the MoU would enhance government’s bid to develop the economy and diversify the economy.

The Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development said it was executing the project in conjunction with the Nigeria Export Import Bank.

It disclosed this in a statement issued in Abuja on Wednesday by the ministry’s Director of Press and Public Relations, Edwin Opara, which was entitled, “MMSD Signs MoU with Sealink on Ajaokuta Jetty as Landing Port.”

The ministry said the project was geared towards utilising the commercial value of the jetty and effective usage of the waterway.

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Reuters reported on Wednesday that the naira resumed trading on the official market at 381 to the dollar after no quotes for two straight sessions, as the central bank unified the country’s multiple exchange rates.

It noted that the central bank had been under pressure from both the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund for currency reforms in order to qualify for budget-support loans, and from the Nigerian government, to get more naira for its crude oil receipts.

The World Bank was expected to approve a $3bn budget- support loan for Nigeria in the coming months.

Nigeria offered multiple foreign-exchange rates, which it imposed to manage dollar demand after oil prices crashed. But dollar shortages have followed, stifling growth.

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the latest figures from the Central Bank of Nigeria on Wednesday showed that Currency in circulation dropped by N52.5bn from N2.35tn at the end of May to N2.29tn in June.

Recent figures showed that there was a steady rise in cash in circulation during the lockdown introduced in some states to contain the COVID-19 pandemic in the country.

Statistics obtained from the CBN showed that currency in circulation, which stood at N2.29tn at the end of March, rose to N2.3tn in April.

The apex bank said Currency in circulation at end-November 2019 rose by 9.9 per cent to N2.2tn, in contrast to the decline of 0.4 per cent at the end of the third quarter of 2019.

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The Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria has said it will continue to create opportunities for its members and enlighten the government on the need to employ professionals.

The President, CITN, Mrs. Olajumoke Simplice, said this during the institute’s 28th annual general meeting, which was also held online.

She said in response to the challenges faced by members, particularly at the states, council has sustained its advocacy for opportunities for members to be engaged.

She said that the creation of tax units manned by a qualified tax professional at Ministries, Departments and Agencies, is being canvassed.

She added that the CITN represented to relevant agencies of government at the federal and state levels for proper placement of the institute’s certificate in the scheme of service.

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According to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), U.S. electric vehicle maker Tesla Inc sold 14,954 Shanghai-made Model 3 vehicles in China in June, up 35% month-on-month.

CPCA data showed that Tesla sold 11,095 vehicles in May, up from around 3,635 units in April. CPCA uses a different counting method than Tesla’s deliveries.

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Shares in Nokia fell up to 8% in Wednesday trade on concerns that the Finnish company was losing the business of its key client Verizon in the United States.

Nokia, battling with China’s Huawei and Sweden’s Ericsson, is trying to strengthen its 5G slate and looking especially to deployment by U.S. telecom companies for growth.

JP Morgan downgraded Nokia to neutral” from overweight, citing a potential loss of business with Verizon.

JPM in a note said they believe that there is a real risk Verizon will depend less on Nokia as their primary RAN (radio access network) supplier going forward, adding there were signs Verizon was using Samsung.

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According to OPEC Sources, Angola has agreed with OPEC to comply fully with a global pact on supply curbs and will compensate for previous overproduction by cutting more from July to September.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies led by Russia, a group known as OPEC+, agreed to cut oil output from May by a record 9.7 million barrels per day (bpd) after the coronavirus crisis destroyed a third of global demand.

The record cuts are now due to run to the end of July, before tapering to 7.7 million bpd until December.

The sources told Reuters that Angola had now committed to improve its compliance with its quota and to make up for its May and June overproduction by cutting more in July to September.

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Ratings agency Fitch on Tuesday said South Africa’s plans to rein in government spending will be hard to implement due to low economic growth, adding the country had a poor track record of delivering debt and spending cuts.

Finance Minister Tito Mboweni said in an emergency budget in June that the government deficit would widen to 14.6% of gross domestic product in the 2020/21 fiscal year, while debt would jump to 81.8% of GDP.

The Treasury however stuck with its promise of around 230 billion rand ($13.5 billion) of spending cuts in the short term, a target set in February before the COVID-19 pandemic.

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South Sudan’s central bank said it cut its benchmark interest rate to 10% from 13%, as part of efforts to mitigate the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on the economy.

This is the second time the central bank has slashed its rate since April, when it cut by 200 basis points to 13%.

Governor Gamal Abdalla Wani said the downward revision was geared towards reducing the cost of financing to the private sector by commercial banks.

Wani told reporters on Tuesday while announcing the cut that affordable loans will benefit business and South Sudanese citizens alike at this time of crisis.

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