Business
London hit by travel chaos as Tube staff goes on strike
LONDON – Millions of Londoners were caught up in commuting chaos on Wednesday, as Underground workers began the first in a series of strikes that Prime Minister David Cameron branded as “shameful.”
As tempers frayed on packed buses and the capital’s streets swarmed with commuters walking, running and cycling to work through gale-force winds, Mayor Boris Johnson and powerful union leader Bob Crow traded recriminations over the latest walkout.
London’s Underground rail drivers plan to stay out for two days this week and another two next week, in a row over job cuts and modernisation. The action has brought new calls to curtail the rights of unions to strike in key infrastructure areas.
Some three million people use the Tube system most days. Only a lucky few could cram themselves on the handful of trains that were running on Wednesday.
Cameron said on his official Twitter feed that the strike was “shameful, bringing misery to millions of Londoners.”
Speaking later in parliament, he added: “I unreservedly condemn this strike. There is absolutely no justification for a strike. We need a modernised tube line working for the millions of Londoners who use it every day.”
Police were out in force at major rail stations to keep order in the long lines that began building up at bus stops shortly after dawn. Even so, there were reports of jostling as tempers frayed.
Thousands of workers took to the roads on bikes. Boat services along the River Thames were running extra trips. The more athletic used the strike as a chance to run to work from the suburbs.
Fund manager Richard Marwood was among them. “To be honest, running to work is something I like to do most weeks anyway, but travelling under your own steam is particularly handy in circumstances like this,” he told Reuters.
Lauren Sweeney, 26, a legal PA, said getting to her office would take her an extra 30 minutes, on top of her usual one-hour journey. She lives in Hornchurch, in east London, and works near Liverpool Street in the City of London.
“It’s a hassle,” she said. “Everyone has been talking about how they are going to get in to work for days.”
JOB LOSSES
The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport workers (RMT) and the Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) unions called the strike to protest against job losses and plans to close manned ticket offices as part of the modernisation of the 151-year-old network. A second 48-hour strike is planned for February 11 to February 14.
RMT leader Crow said the strike was “rock solid” and had reduced the network to a skeleton service. The TSSA said service had been reduced by 70 percent.
“That is simply a reflection of the staff anger at attempts to bulldoze through cuts to jobs, services and safety which would reduce the tube to a dangerous, hollowed-out shell,” Crow said in a statement.
He added that the unions remained available for talks with Mayor Johnson to resolve the dispute.
Johnson – who has accused the unions of “holding a gun to the heads of Londoners” – said he respected the rights of the trade unions to represent their workers, but the modernisation plans had to go ahead.
The London Chamber of Commerce said repeated strike action could hurt London’s image as a modern, efficient city and affect long-term investment prospects.
Based on figures from previous strikes in 2010, the business lobby said the two 48-hour strikes could cost the financial capital over 200 million pounds ($326 million).
Turnout at the vote for the strike was only 30 percent, according to Transport for London (TfL), the body that runs the network. Johnson has said he favours new rules permitting strikes only if at least 50 percent of a union’s members take part in the voting.
Cameron’s spokesman said the Conservatives, the larger party in Britain’s coalition government, were considering putting unspecified but related measures in their manifesto for the next election in 2015.
“They are actively looking at this area with a view to the next Conservative manifesto,” the spokesman added.
– REUTERS
The Nigerian stock market ended Wednesday on a bullish note, recording a significant gain of N364 billion for investors, despite concerns over corporate governance as 30 companies were axed from the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX).
The market’s positive performance was largely driven by the release of full-year 2024 financial results, boosting investor confidence.
The market capitalisation, which opened at N64.156 trillion, increased by 0.57% to close at N64.520 trillion.
READ MORE: EFCC, NGX RegCo Strengthen Partnership On Market Integrity
Similarly, the All-Share Index (ASI) rose by 591 points, or 0.57%, to settle at 104,549.74 from the previous 103,958.75. This pushed the Year-To-Date (YTD) return to 1.58%.
Despite the market’s overall bullish sentiment, market breadth remained negative, with 38 losers outweighing 27 gainers.
Among the top gainers, Aradel Holdings led the chart with a 10% increase to close at N594, followed by Chellarams Plc (9.98%), Stanbic IBTC (9.92%), UPL (9.64%), and Daar Communications (9.09%).
On the flip side, McNichols and Caverton led the losers’ chart, both dropping 10% to close at N1.44 and N2.07 per share, respectively.
Other notable decliners included Thomas Wyatt (-9.8%), Veritas Kapital (-9.79%), and Consolidated Hallmark Plc (-9%).
Market activity remained robust, with the total value of traded stocks rising by 9.99%. Investors exchanged 421.62 million shares worth N15 billion across 16,256 deals, compared to 542.23 million shares valued at N13.636 billion in the previous session.
Universal Insurance dominated the volume chart with 33.6 million shares, while Aradel Holdings led in transaction value, recording N6.3 billion in trades.
Amid the market rally, the NGX took a decisive step in enhancing corporate governance by delisting 30 companies over compliance failures.
The NGX Regulation Limited (NGX RegCo), the independent regulation subsidiary of Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX), and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have called for enhanced partnership to enhance market surveillance and combat financial crimes in Nigeria’s increasingly digitalized capital market.
This strategic initiative was discussed during a high-level meeting between NGX RegCo’s Chief Executive Officer, Olufemi Shobanjo, and EFCC’s Executive Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, at the Commission’s Abuja headquarters on Tuesday, January 28, 2025.
During the meeting, Shobanjo highlighted the critical need to adapt regulatory frameworks to address sophisticated digital financial crimes emerging in today’s evolving market landscape. “The digitalization of our markets has brought new challenges, necessitating a more robust collaborative approach,” he stated. “While our 2013 MoU established initial cooperation parameters, the substantial market growth in 2024 demands an enhanced partnership framework. As a frontline regulator, we recognize the EFCC’s crucial role in providing enforcement support and specialized expertise to combat market abuse and protect investor interests.”
ALSO READ: Dangote Imports 12m Barrels Of Crude From United States
Shobanjo emphasized NGX RegCo’s dedication to maintaining market integrity and expressed confidence that reinforced collaboration with the EFCC would strengthen investor protection mechanisms.
Responding, Olukoyede commended the desire to strengthen the existing relationship between the two agencies and assured that the Commission was ready and willing to collaborate.
“I know you are also concerned with regulatory compliance because the issue of compliance is a key issue. It is part of our mandate to enforce compliance. Under my administration, we have strengthened our bond with different regulatory bodies. Let’s see how we can have a desk where we can work better and attend to you. I have a special interest in the capital market in respect of the abuse of assets and trades. We will try to review the MoU, make our observations in line with the relevant laws and regulations, and communicate our views to you. We pledge our commitment to this”, he said.
The strategic dialogue highlighted both organizations’ shared commitment to fostering a secure, transparent, and globally competitive Nigerian capital market that instils investor confidence and promotes sustainable economic growth.
In the bid to boost local refining of petroleum products, the Dangote Petroleum Refinery has placed orders for up to 12 million barrels of crude oil from the United States.
Biztellers gathered that the refinery resorted to crude importation because local supply challenges was threatening the new $20bn refinery’s push to reach full refining capacity.
Recall that the refinery plans to reach its 650,000 barrels per day capacity in June this year.
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Reliable sources at the Dangote Refinery maintained that low local crude supply from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) had become a challenge to this plan to ramp up daily production.
The 12 million barrels of crude were already on the way from the United States and expected to land in Nigeria next month, according to the African Report.
“About 12 million barrels of crude have departed the US and should arrive in Nigeria by February,” an insider source told The Africa Report.
Dangote Petroleum Refinery is said to be importing more crude oil as supply from the NNPC becomes insufficient for fuel production at the $20bn Lekki-based facility.
Officials at the plant said the facility has ramped up production to about 500,000 barrels per day, with the target of hitting the 650,000bpd mark by June this year.
The NNPC Ltd is reportedly struggling to supply 350,000bpd to the Dangote refinery from the 450,000bpd crude meant for Nigeria’s local consumption.
With its current production capacity of 500,000bpd, officials said there is a need to look beyond the shores of Nigeria for the feedstock.
Recall that in July 2024, President Tinubu ordered the NNPC Ltd to sell crude oil to local refineries in naira.
According to the crude oil production forecast of producing oil companies and the refining requirement of functional refineries in Nigeria signed by the Chief Executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, Gbenga Komolafe, the Dangote refinery would require 550,000 barrels of a blend of Nigerian crude oil daily, 17.05 million barrels monthly, and 99.55 million barrels between January and June 2025.
The Dangote Refinery is already building eight more tanks to store imported crude. The facility is planning to stockpile imported crude oil because local supplies have become unreliable.
Officials of the refinery were quoted as saying that low crude supply from the NNPC Ltd “is driving import dependence.”
The building of eight additional tanks will see crude storage capacity at the refinery jump by 41.67 per cent to 3.4 billion litres.
“Importing crude from other countries instead of buying locally means that our crude stockpiles will have to be higher,” the Vice President in charge of the oil and gas business at Dangote Industries, Devakumar Edwin, said.
In May 2024, the refinery reportedly issued a term tender for the purchase of two million barrels of West Texas Intermediate Midland crude monthly for 12 months starting in July last year, amounting to 24 million barrels of crude in one year.
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