BusinessDay 23 Mar 2018

Friday 23 March 2018 C002D5556 BUSINESS DAY 17
COMPANIES & MARKETS
Business Event
L-R: Okhidievbie Oamien Roy, group CEO, August Eye Group Limited; Adebayo Abegunde,
director , virtual technology and new markets, Halogen Security Company and Martin Gill, founder,
Outstanding Security Performance Awards (OSPAs), while presenting the Outstanding Contract
Security Company (Guarding) Award 2018 to the Halogen during the 2nd edition of Securex
West Africa 2018 in Lagos.
Fed signals extra rate rises
as growth accelerates
Central bank projections point to further increase in 2019
Sam Fleming in Washington
The Federal Reserve
lifted short-term
interest rates by a
quarter-point and
forecast that rates
will rise higher than expected
in the coming years as its new
chairman Jay Powell responds
to strengthening growth at
home and abroad.
The US central bank raised
the target range for the federal
funds rate by a quarter point
to 1.5-1.75 per cent as it predicted
inflation would accelerate
in the coming months.
The Fed’s median forecast
for interest rates at the end of
2018 was left unchanged, but
its projections pointed to an
extra increase in 2019.
“The economic outlook
has strengthened in recent
months,” the Fed said in a
statement following its latest
two-day meeting. “The
Committee expects that, with
further gradual adjustments in
the stance of monetary policy,
economic activity will expand
at a moderate pace in the medium
term and labour market
conditions will remain strong.”
Shortly after he took over
the Fed in February Mr Powell
signalled the US had hit an
important turning point, as
previous drags, including fiscal
policy, reverse direction
and provide a lift to growth.
Republican tax cuts and a deal
on Capitol Hill to boost limits
on spending are set to deliver
a major short-term stimulus;
the $1.5tn tax cuts should on
their own add half a percentage
point to growth this year
and next, according to Fed
governor Lael Brainard.
The S&P 500 was up 0.6
per cent on the statement,
having been up 0.4 per cent
beforehand. The 10-year yield
was 2.8 basis points higher
at 2.9088 per cent, up from
2.8941 per cent immediately
before the rates outcome. That
brought it back above the 2.9
per cent mark, where it had
been earlier in the day.
The yield on the more policy
sensitive two-year note was
flat at 2.3366 per cent, slightly
trimming earlier gains.
The dollar index, which
tracks the greenback against
a weighted basket of global
peers, was down 0.3 per cent
90.119, roughly the same level
as before the policy decision.
Wednesday’s increase in
the Fed’s target rate was widely
expected by the financial
markets. While some traders
expected the Fed to pencil in a
total of four rate rises this year,
the median forecast in Fed officials’
rate outlook remained
unchanged at three.
However, the median prediction
is now for three increases
in 2019, more than
previously expected.
- Culled from FT
Abimbola Ogunbanjo, president of the council, Nigerian Stock Exchange, ( r) with president
George Weah of Liberia after a closed door meeting to discuss Nigerian private sector investment
opportunities in Liberia.
L-R: Misbahu Yola, managing director, Legacy Pension Managers Limited; Ladi Balogun, chairman
of the company, and Margaret Targema-Takema, company secretary/legal adviser, during the 1oth
Annual General Meeting of Legacy Pension Managers in Lagos, recently
Okezie Ikpeazu, executive governor, Abia State (l), and Okey Ezeala, regional director, South-east/
South-south of First City Monument Bank (FCMB), during a courtesy visit by the Management of
FCMB to Governor Ikpeazu at the State House, Umuahia, Abia State