Business
World Economy To Improve By 2011 – Survey
Employers will hire more workers this year, and the economy will grow faster than envisioned three months ago, according to an Associated Press survey that found growing optimism among leading economists.
But unemployment will stay chronically high, nearly 9 percent by year’s end, the latest quarterly AP Economy Survey shows.
A majority of economists say it will be 2016 or later before unemployment drops to a historically normal rate of around 5 percent.
Economists have become more confident 19 months after the worst recession since the Great Depression ended. Lower Social Security taxes and higher stock prices will embolden Americans to spend more and help power the economy, they say.
“People will finally recognize that an economic recovery is under way,” said Lynn Reaser, a board member of the National Association for Business Economics. “This won’t be a recovery seen only by economists.”
The gains this year will be enough to withstand the threats still clouding the economy, the AP survey found. A majority of the economists doubt, for example, that falling home prices and higher mortgage rates will pose a major risk to the economy in 2011.
The AP survey collected the views of 42 private, corporate and academic economists on a range of indicators. Among their forecasts:
The economy will grow 3.2 percent this year, compared with the 2.7 percent they forecast in October. That would top last year’s estimated growth of less than 3 percent.
Employers will create a net total of 2.2 million jobs. Three months ago, the economists predicted 1.6 million jobs would be added in 2011. Last year, employers added roughly 1.1 million.
Consumers will spend 3.2 percent more this year than last year. That’s stronger than the 2.5 percent growth the economists had forecast in October. And it’s nearly double the spending growth that’s estimated for 2010.
Inflation will be 1.8 percent this year, barely more than the 1.7 percent the economists forecast in the previous survey and up only slightly from 1.5 percent last year. The 1.8 percent forecast falls within the range of inflation the Federal Reserve thinks a healthy economy needs.
Among the reasons for the economists’ growing optimism: an extension of income-tax cuts, a cut in Social Security taxes for workers, easier access to loans, higher stock prices and a government that seems more sympathetic to the priorities of businesses.
The brighter outlook is also evident among people responsible for hiring.
Jerry Huddleston, human resources manager of the Ozark Natural Foods grocery store in Fayetteville, Ark., said he plans to hire for busy weekend shifts because sales are improving.
The store is generally slow to add jobs. But Huddleston said business is picking up. Customers seem more willing to pay more for organic milk, vitamin supplements and pre-made vegetarian meals.
“I think people are starting to be more confident that the job they have is the job they will have tomorrow,” he said.
As the economy gradually strengthens, the economists expect interest rates will tick up, as they already have begun to do. They think the yield on the 10-year Treasury note, now at 3.4 percent, will reach 3.6 percent by midyear and 3.9 percent by year’s end. Those higher rates would force up mortgage rates, which tend to track the 10-year Treasury yield.
Yet when asked about a range of threats, from falling home prices and rising energy prices to state budget woes and Europe’s debt crisis, the economists called each a minor risk rather than a major risk to the economy.
In the spring and summer, many analysts had feared the economy might slide back into a “double-dip” recession.
“Consumers and businesses are in a better mood,” said Nariman Behravesh, chief economist at IHS Global Insight. “They are spending a little more freely. Not a lot more freely, but a little more freely.”
That helps explain why Behravesh has lifted his forecast for economic growth in 2011 to 3.2 percent, from 2.2 percent in October.
Still, the Fed said Wednesday that the economy isn’t growing fast enough to lower unemployment and still needs help from the Fed’s $600 billion Treasury bond-purchase program. The bond purchases are intended to lower rates on loans and boost stock prices, spurring more spending and invigorating the economy.
President Barack Obama still faces risks from voters skeptical of his economic stewardship, according to a new Associated Press-GfK poll. More than half disapprove of how he’s handled the economy. Just 35 percent say it’s improved on his watch; 40 percent had said so a year ago.
The Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited (NIGCOMSAT), the country’s satellite operator, has called for immediate promolgation of policy action that will enable the country to harness the potentials of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
NIGCOMSAT, also warned that Nigeria risks missing out on Africa’s projected $1.2trillion share of the global AI economy by 2030.
Managing Director of NIGCOMSAT, Nkechi Egerton-Idehen, disclosed this in a statement issued at the weekend following her participation in the Meeting of the National Council for Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy.
“Artificial intelligence is reshaping industries, economies, and societies worldwide, with projections that it will contribute up to $15.7trillion to the global economy by 2030. Africa stands to gain $1.2trillion of this if the right policies and innovations are in place”, Idehen said, citing a PricewaterhouseCoopers report.
The NIGCOMSAT MD underscored the transformative potential of AI in agriculture, highlighting its applicability in Benue State, widely regarded as Nigeria’s “food basket.”
According to her, machine learning tools could revolutionize agricultural practices by improving pest detection and optimizing planting schedules using satellite imagery.
“AI offers us the chance to not only flourish economically but also to achieve food security. However, we must ask ourselves if we are prepared to manage this technology responsibly”, she added.
Idehen also noted that internet access remains a significant barrier to AI adoption in Nigeria.
“For AI tools to be effective, basic digital infrastructure is essential. Addressing this gap must be a priority.
“AI is happening. We have the opportunity to manage this technology revolution responsibly, both in Africa and globally, through innovation and governance”, she said.
In August 2024, the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy released a draft National Artificial Intelligence Strategy, aiming to position Nigeria as a global leader in AI.
Corlins Walter
The Chairman of Emohua Local Government Council, Chief David Omereji, has said the council has so far spent over N1 billion for the electrification of communities in the area.
Omereji said this while addressing staff of the council at the council headquarters recently.
He said the move was part of his administration’s resolve to ensure peace and development of the LGA.
According to him, the Council spent about N29 million on monthly basis for the maintenance of the Emohua Local Vigilante group known as OSPAC, with each member being paid a stipend of N100, 000 monthly.
He diaclosed that 11 out of the 14 wards are currently enjoying electricity, while efforts are on to light-up the remaining ones.
“I also want to use this opportunity to inform the political class for purposes of records and for the understanding of the people that the Council under my watch have done more than enough”, he said .
The Emolga boss explained that all that have been achieved were through the personal effort of the Council, without support from anybody as rumoured in some quarters.
Omereji further reaveled that a number of other projects, including roads, fencing of schools, hospitals, courts premises, and reconstruction of some abandoned buildings at the Council Headquarters are being undertaken by his administration.
He enjoined the people of the area to support his administration’s drive to bring purposeful development to the LGA.
The Emohua Council boss, who reiterated his hatred for noise making, stated that his works would speak for him, and solicited the support of staff of the council and the entire people of the area.
He noted the fact that some people may not be happy with his achievements, saying that he would remain focused, while advising critics of his government to do so constructively with facts and figures.
King Onunwor
The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) has raised some ethical questions over a Financial and Technical Services Agreement (FTSA) between Sahara Energy and West African Gas Limited (WAGL), an affiliate of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC).
MOSOP said the agreement was not done in good faith, not in the interest of the Nigerian people, and did not follow due process.
Foremost Ogoni born activist and MOSOP leader, Fegalo Nsuke, who made this known in Abuja, weekend, described the Sahara-WAGL deal as fraudulent, deceptive and an insult on the intelligence and integrity of the Nigerian nation.
Nsuke called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to cancel that FTSA between Sahara Energy and WAGL, noting that the agreement is fraught with irregularities and deceptive.
“What Sahara and the NNPC did in the FTSA between Sahara and WAGL is shameful and depicts high level corruption in public service of our country.
“WAGL is an affiliate of Sahara and the NNPC. How then can Sahara go into an agreement with its own affiliate? It’s as good as going into an agreement with itself. This is deceptive and fraudulent”, Nsuke said.
He continued that “Sahara Energy is certainly not a company the Ogoni people want on their soil and we are calling on Mr. President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to terminate any deal between the NNPC and Sahara Energy over OML 11, and to allow for an inclusive arrangement that considers a fair treatment of the Ogoni people in the distribution of revenues from natural resource extraction on Ogoni soil.
“The last Ogoni Congress has been unequivocal on the Ogoni demand for justice and has given a clear path to resolve the three decade old conflict between all critical parties.
“It will be good to explore this path to peace and development for Ogoni and for our country”.
Nsuke accused Sahara Energy and the NNPC of frustrating the progress made by MOSOP to achieve a permanent solution to the Ogoni problem.
He urged a presidential intervention with deep consideration for a fair treatment of the Ogoni people in order to permanently address the problem.
He noted that Sahara Energy should give up on the Ogoni area to allow for an engagement in the interest of the country and the people.
Recall that MOSOP and Sagara Energy have recently been engaged in a row in what MOSOP describes as an unholy relationship between Sahara Energy and the NNPC over OML 11.
MOSOP expressly rejected Sahara Energy and called for a fair treatment of the Ogoni people in natural resource extraction in Ogoni.
It noted that Ogoni people, led by MOSOP, paid the sacrifice to take the oil from Shell, hence “the position of MOSOP must be taken into consideration in decisions relating to resumption of oil production in Ogoni”.