Author: Lucas

Nigeria’s Dangote oil refinery, already the largest in Africa, aims to become the biggest in the world in three years’ time with an expansion doubling its capacity, its owner said on Sunday.”We are more than doubling the barrels… to 1.4 million from 650,000,” said Aliko Dangote, a Nigerian businessman who is Africa’s richest person.”This will make it the largest refinery” globally, surpassing India’s Jamnagar Refinery, he said. The privately run Dangote refinery, which started operations last year, is a gamechanger for Nigeria, which previously had to import almost all its petrol despite being a major oil producer.After years of neglect and…

Chloe Chalakani is an entrepreneur who runs a handmade pasta business with her partner in coastal Maine. The government shutdown fight affects how much she’ll pay for health insurance next year. Selena Simmons-Duffin/NPR hide caption toggle caption Selena Simmons-Duffin/NPR Chloe Chalakani has a lot at stake in the health care fight at the heart of the government shutdown. Chalakani runs a small culinary business with her partner in the coastal town of Thomaston, Maine. As temperatures drop and the height of her busy tourist season winds down, she’s hitting her list of fall administrative tasks, including health insurance enrollment. She…

New lending for UK commercial real estate in the first half of 2025 rose by a third from the same period last year, to £22.3bn (€25.7bn), helped by banks and development financing, according to a report by Bayes Business School. The latest bi-annual report from Bayes reveals that new lending for commercial real estate rose 33% in the first half of the year. Separately, secondary loan market syndication surpassed £10bn, nearly matching the total volume for all of 2024. Bayes said banks have made significant progress in reducing their defaulted loan books, achieving a 10-20% decline through 70% of loan refinancing…

India is world’s second biggest consumer of gold, after China. Bulk of the gold requirement is met through imports and domestic bullion recycled locally. So apart from international prices, which is denominated in dollar, import duties and other taxes play a role in determining domestic gold rates. Bullion is seen as a hedge against inflation but bond yields and the dollar rate also have a bearing on the prices of the precious metal. Here are latest gold prices in major Indian cities.Why is gold so precious in India?Gold is considered a precious metal in India and around the world for…

PARIS, FRANCE – JUNE 08: In this photo illustration, Google app logos, Drive, YouTube, Gmail, Chrome, Google and Google Maps are displayed on the screen of an iPhone on June 08, 2023 in Paris, France. (Photo illustration by Chesnot/Getty Images)Getty ImagesGoogle stock (NASDAQ: GOOG) has a history of notable rallies. The stock increased by over 30% in less than two months during critical years such as 2010 and 2024, and even achieved a rare rally exceeding 50% in 2025 as investors became more optimistic about the company’s prospects in the generative AI era. This kind of momentum underscores the possibility…

Dangote Refinery has announced it will increase production from 650,000 barrels per day to 1.4 million barrels per day. Naija News reports that the President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, made this known during a press conference in Lagos on Sunday. Dangote said the move reflects confidence in Nigeria’s future and aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s vision of making the country a global supplier of refined petroleum products. According to him, upon completion, the expansion will make the facility the world’s largest refinery, surpassing the Jamnagar Refinery in India. He said, “We are more than doubling the barrels… to 1.4…

IN an era of market volatility and shifting interest rates, bonds continue to be a cornerstone of stability for investors seeking predictable income and steady growth. Yet, many investors remain unfamiliar with how bonds work, their key features, and the role they play in building wealth.   What Are Bonds? A bond is a loan made by an investor to a borrower typically a government, municipality, or corporation. In return, the borrower pays interest at regular intervals (known as coupons) and repays the original amount (principal) when the bond matures. For example, if you buy a five-year bond with a…

MOUNTAIN LABORATORY Peat bogs in the Xistral Mountains in northwestern Spain. Credit: Antonio Martinez Cortizas Evidence of ancient human activity can be gleaned from the concentrations of the rare element osmium in soil core samples, a new report shows. The finding suggests that osmium could be used generally to discover and date past human industrial activities. OSMIUM RECORD A sample of peat bog from northwestern Spain contains evidence of ancient mining. Credit: Antonio Martinez Cortizas An international team led by Sébastien Rauch at Chalmers University of Technology, in Sweden, shows that 4,700 years ago technologies such as mining and smelting…

The versatile location, currently set up as office space, is described as “ideal” for a growing company or professional services. According to estate agent REMAX, the property has six separate office rooms, kitchen facilities, a ground floor WC, a first-floor shower room, and a private rear garden with a sheltered patio area. The property spans two floors and offers potential for a range of business uses. Upon entering the building, visitors are greeted by a spacious main reception/office area, which leads to a smaller office on the same floor. From here, there is access to a rear kitchen and a…

THE Northern Ireland Open final sees Judd Trump and Jack Lisowski battle it out in Belfast for the prestigious Alex Higgins trophy. Kyren Wilson is the reigning champion after he won the title for the first time last year, beating Trump 9-3 in the final. Sign up for the Sport newsletter Thank you! Judd Trump is looking to win the title againCredit: Getty NORTHERN IRELAND OPEN LIVE COVERAGE The Ace in the Pack is looking to go one further this year and win this title for a record fifth time. He faces Lisowski in the final, who is looking to…