By Alex C
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has disbursed N232.56 billion from the Power and Airline Intervention Fund as at December 31, 2013. The apex bank said in a circular posted on its website at the weekend that both sectors expended the money on the execution of 87 projects.
It said that airlines got N116.92billion for 36 projects, while the power sector collected N115.73billion for 51 projects. The Federal Government in 2013 released N300 billion as bailout fund to the two sectors. The fund is to fast-track ongoing power projects and provide loan to local airline operators.
Nigeria sold 137.85 billion naira ($843.12 million) of Treasury bills (Tbillls)ranging from 3-month to one-year maturities with the six month and 1-year paper fetching higher yields than at the previous auction, while returns on the 3-month bill was unchanged.
The apex bank said on Friday it issued 27.85 billion naira in the 91-day Tbill at 10 percent, the same rate attracted by the paper at the previous auction last month.
The bank sold 30 billion naira worth of the six month bill at 10.45 percent, 44 basis points higher than 10.01 percent the same tenor got at the last auction, while it sold 80 billion naira in the one year paper at 10.49 percent against 10.12 percent previously.
Total demand stood at 304.36 billion naira, lower than the 520.7 billion naira in subscriptions at the May 21 auction.
Yields on Nigerian treasury bills fell 20 basis points across the board at the secondary market on Thursday last week after the new CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele signalled the bank would seek to gradually reduce interest rates.
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