Economy

By Sylvia Kodilichukwu, Enugu Anambra State Government has introduced the Voluntary Assets Income Declaration and Tax Regularization Scheme (VAIDS), which runs from 6 July, 2026, to 5 September, 2026. This was disclosed in a public announcement by Executive Chairman (AIRS), Anambra Internal Revenue Service (AIRS), Ikeazor Okonkwo, who said that the scheme offers a one-time chance for taxpayers to fix their tax issues without facing the full penalties for not complying. He explained that the scheme is available to everyone, including individuals, businesses, and other organisations that have unpaid taxes or fees, those who have not registered as taxable persons,…

By Emmanuel Ogoigbe, Warri Julius Berger Services Nigeria Limited has intensified efforts to attract investors, importers, and exporters to Warri Port, Delta State, promoting its Multipurpose Terminal in the facility as a strategic hub for trade, logistics, and industrial development in Nigeria. The company said the terminal (Terminal C), located within the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) complex in Warri, possesses the infrastructure, security framework, and operational capacity needed to support increased commercial activities and boost regional trade. The company made the disclosure during a facility tour by members of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Warri Correspondents’ Chapel, where the…

*Mbah Deepens Transparency, Fast-Tracks C-of-O Issuance By Sylvia Kodilichukwu, Enugu Enugu State Government has launched a fully digitized land transaction and documentation system for the State Housing Development Corporation (ESHDC) as part of Governor Peter Mbah’s ongoing reforms promoting transparency, accountability, efficiency, and investor confidence in the state’s land administration sector. The digital transformation initiative, officially unveiled during the commissioning of the corporation’s digitized office operations and workflow system in Enugu, is expected to revolutionize land documentation, payment processing, records management, and issuance of Certificates of Occupancy (C-of-O), while eliminating delays and irregularities associated with manual procedures. Speaking at the…

By Sylvia Kodilichukwu, Enugu Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State has reassured the commitment of the State Government to keep supporting the Organised Private Sector (OPS) as key driver of economic growth in the South-East state. Mbah disclosed this in Enugu while declaring open the 37th Enugu International Trade Fair, organised by the Enugu Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (ECCIMA). The ongoing 10-day fair is themed:'Empowering Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) for Global Competitiveness'. Represented by the Deputy Governor, Chief Ifeanyi Ossai, the governor said that the state's current administration believed on the capabilities of the OPS…

*ECCIMA Tasks Govt To Empower MSMEs By Sylvia Kodilichukwu, Enugu Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has issued Mandatory Conformity Assessment Programme (MANCAP) certificates to 24 firms operating within Enugu State. The certificates covered the companies' 41 products with one of the firms receiving Product Identification Certificate for its unique product. Issuing the certificates yesterday in Enugu, Director-General (DG) of SON, Dr Ifeanyi Okeke, said that SON's MANCAP certificate remained a seal of quality and international standards for made-in-Nigeria products globally. Okeke said that MANCAP is a mandatory product certification scheme which ensures all locally manufactured products conform with Nigeria Industrial…

*Prices In Nigeria Stable From Last Hike *Iranian Leaders Pledge Loyalty To New Supreme Leader Oil prices have tumbled back from the four-year highs they hit yesterday after US President Donald Trump suggested the US-Israel war on Iran could end “very soon." It has been an extraordinary 24 hours in global markets. This time yesterday, Brent crude, the international benchmark, surged beyond $100 per barrel for the first time since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 – triggering stark sell-offs across leading Asian and European stock indices. Wall Street also started the day under pressure in New York. Then Trump,…

Africa’s largest mobile network operator, MTN Group Limited, has projected that its full-year earnings will more than quadruple, driven by a sharp recovery in the conglomerate's Ghanaian and Nigerian operations. In a trading statement released today, the Johannesburg-headquartered telecommunications giant said it is finalising its results for the year ended 31 December 2025 and anticipates reporting a markedly stronger performance compared with the previous year. The group expects earnings per share to swing dramatically from a loss of 531 cents in 2024 to a range of 1,062 to 1,168 cents in 2025, representing an increase of more than 300 per…

*People&Politics' Report Comes True Oil prices rose and stock markets have come under pressure today after intense US-Israeli strikes on Iran prompted fears of significant global economic disruption. Brent crude jumped by as much as 13% during early trading – to hit $82 per barrel, a 14-month high – as the effective closure of the strait of Hormuz, one of the most important arteries for global trade, intensified concerns over oil supplies. Ahead of this development, People&Politics on 20 February this year ran a report headlined 'Potential US-Iran Conflict: Nigeria The Winner, Rubs Hands As Unexpected Windfall Beckons' in which…

*Oil Prices Tipped To Hit $120bp, Almost Twice Current Rate Should President Donald Trump order the much-expected military strikes on Iran soon, Nigeria's vaults may bulge with petro-dollars thereafter. US and Iranian negotiators are presently locked in talks over the global superpower's insistence that Iran cannot own a nuclear weapon, saying the Middle East nation would deploy such weapon of mass destruction to terrorize other nations in the region, given her antecedents -a charge the Islamic Republic flatly denies, contending its nuclear program is purely for peaceful purposes. However, Trump seems dissatisfied with Iran's stance at the talks and yesterday…

*Still, Central Banks Around The World Buy Despite Exorbitant Prices Global financial services firm, JPMorgan, expects gold prices to hit $6,300 (about N8.7m) per ounce by the end of 2026 – despite bullion suffering its sharpest one-day drop since 1983 last Friday. Gold futures fell 0.9% Monday, 2 February, continuing its descent following news that President Donald Trump plans to nominate former Fed governor Kevin Warsh to lead the US Federal Reserve – an expected pick that calmed investor nerves. But JPMorgan expects gold prices to hit $6,300 per ounce by the end of 2026 as investors and central banks…