Author: Chronicle Editor

Apple sold fewer iPhones than a year ago in the first three months of 2017, the company said in its latest results. The California firm, which is due to release a new phone later this year, said it sold 50.8 million iPhones in the period, down 1% year-on-year. Apple boss Tim Cook blamed a “pause” as customers wait for the next iPhone. Shares in the firm fell nearly 2% in after-hours trading after earlier hitting a record high on expectations of better results. Apple reported a 4.6% rise in revenue across the whole company to $52.9bn (£41bn), slightly below analysts’…

The 2019 target set by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation to exit importation of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) is still achievable, Group Managing Director, Dr. Maikanti Kacalla Baru, has said. Dr. Baru made this known while fielding questions from journalists on the sidelines of the ongoing Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) in Houston, United States, yesterday. The GMD, who was represented by the Chief Operating Officer, Gas & Power, Engr. Saidu Mohammed, told journalists that as at today, all the nation’s three refineries were producing petroleum products. “We load out at least 5 to 6 million litres of PMS daily and…

MTN Group reported a 7.1 per cent rise in first-quarter revenue helped by a strong performance in data services, Africa’s biggest mobile phone operator said on Wednesday. Ratings agency Fitch downgraded MTN to junk status in April and gave it a negative outlook, citing weakness in the economic and operating environments of its main subsidiaries in South Africa and Nigeria. MTN said data revenue, which contributed 20 percent of total revenue, was up 29.4 percent for the three months ended March 31. Shares in MTN were up 1.36 percent to 128.52 rand at 0700 GMT. “In our key markets of…

Suspected militants have killed three police officers and wounded five others in an attack in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, the interior ministry says. The assailants, riding in two vehicles, opened fire on a security convoy on the main ring road in the Nasr City area. No group has yet said it was behind the attack, which occurred on Monday night. However, jihadist militants have killed hundreds of police and soldiers since the military overthrew Islamist President Mohammed Morsi in 2013. Last month, President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi declared a state of emergency after at least 45 people were killed in suicide…

Prince Williams and his wife, Duchess Kate are seeking 1.5 million euros in damages over the publication of topless photographs of Kate. This emerged Tuesday on the opening day of the trial of six media representatives for invasion of privacy in Nanterre outside Paris. According to the AFP, French gossip magazine Closer and regional newspaper La Provence in September 2012 published long-lens photos of the Duchess of Cambridge sunbathing topless in the south of France, triggering outrage in Britain. The prosecution in the invasion of privacy trial called for “very significant fines” over the grainy pictures, while a lawyer for…

No fewer than 102 journalists paid the supreme price in the course of their duties in 2016, the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) said on Tuesday. Ms Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO, stated this in her statement on the occasion of the World Press Freedom Day commemorated on May 3. Bokova noted the contributions of journalists to the rule of law, and taking forward the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, specifically, Sustainable Development Goal 16, to build just, peaceful and inclusive societies. “UNESCO is leading this work across the world, starting by standing up for the safety of…

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on Tuesday, barred First Bank, the United Bank for Africa (UBA) and 12 others from dealing in the Small and Medium Entreprises (SME) wholesale Forex window. The other banks affected by the order are FCMB, Keystone Bank, Main Street Bank, Stanbic IBTC, Citi Bank, Enterprise Bank, Ecobank, and WEMA Bank. Guaranty Trust Bank, Union Bank, SunTrust Bank, Standard Chartered Bank were also affected. The CBN spokesman, Mr Isaac Okorafor, in a statement in Abuja, said they were barred, following persistent complaints that some Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) deliberately frustrate efforts by many SMEs to…

Everton winger Aaron Lennon was detained under the Mental Health Act by police over concerns for his welfare. The 30-year-old was taken to hospital “for assessment” after police were called to Salford on Sunday. Lennon is now “receiving care and treatment for a stress-related illness”, his club has said. The England international, who joined Everton from Tottenham in 2015, has not played for the first team since February. Greater Manchester Police said: “Police were called at around 4.35pm to reports of a concern for the welfare of a man on Eccles Old Road. “Officers attended and a 30-year-old man was…

The FBI has confirmed one of its translators travelled to Syria and secretly wed an Islamic State recruiter whom she had been investigating. The FBI “took several steps in a variety of areas to identify and reduce security vulnerabilities” after the incident, the agency told BBC News. Daniela Greene lied to her employers about her 2014 trip, reports CNN, which broke the story. The 38-year-old served two years in prison after fleeing back to the U.S. Greene’s story was ordered to be kept secret by a U.S. judge, but was revealed for the first time on Monday after federal court…

The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) has injected a total of N1.5 billion into Arik Air since it took over the distressed airline in February 2017. The Chief Executive Officer of Arik Air, Captain Roy Ilegbodu, who disclosed this during an interactive session on the activities at Arik, two months after the new management team was appointed by AMCON, commended the corporation for its support. “AMCON indeed has been very supportive with funds and that is why we are still here today. I would say that in the first couple of weeks that we took over, AMCON injected approximately…