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A coalition of Concerned Northern Youths and Students in 19 Northern states have on Wednesday announced their resolve to withdraw from the planned nationwide protest over economic hardship in the country.

The Coalition’s National Coordinator, Jibril Sani Bello, who kicked against the protest while addressing newsmen in Kano, however, called on students in the country to desist from participating in the protest.

Bello, who doubles as the National Senate President, National Association of Kano State Students, NAKSS, said plans to join the protest have already reached an advanced stage but it resolved to withdraw from the protest because organizers and the aim of the protest were unknown. He said, that although they understand the economic hardship faced by Nigerians in recent times protests in the past had caused setbacks to their academic pursuit.

According to him, “We understand the economic hardship in Nigeria but as students, your future is paramount. Already, plans to join the protest have reached an advance stage but we resolved to withdraw from the protest due to the fact that organizers and aim of the protest were unknown, especially with the sponsorship for us to fight for our right and so, we are uncertain whether their intentions are peaceful or v+olent

Students of Kano State University of Science and Technology, KUST, Wudil and Uthman Danfodio University in Sokoto state could bear witness that protest has, in most case, it has been a setback to our academic journey. Those in KUST, Wudil, in the 2017/2018 session have to witness an elongation of 4 to 5 months just because of a day protest. Similarly, students of Uthman Danfodio University, in 2012/2013, there was a protest which led 3 to 4 months elongation of the academic journey.

I strongly urge you to refrain from participating in the upcoming nationwide planned protest. The organizers of this protest are unknown, and we are uncertain whether their intentions are peaceful or v+olent. Your safety and well-being are our top priority.

Besides, this administration has shown consideration for students by making educational loans available without interest, ensuring that you can focus on your studies now and secure jobs in the future to repay these loans. Let’s prioritize our education and future success. While we appreciate the efforts of the government, we are also appealing to them to see the possibility of expanding the scholarship exercise like the foreign one to make it mandatory for every student to be a beneficiary of the scholarship and it will make an academic journey hitch free for students” the National Coordinator, Bello however stated.

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Shares of First Horizon Corp. (FHN) slipped in intraday trading Wednesday after the regional bank reported second-quarter results lower than analysts expected as lower net interest income (NII) hit its profits.

The parent of First Horizon Bank reported NII of $629 million, down slightly from the $631 million it reported last year and below the $636 million analysts had projected, according to estimates compiled by Visible Alpha. That helped lead to revenue coming in below estimates at $815 million, down from last year's $1.03 billion.

Net income fell to $204 million from last year's $329 million, below the $212 million analysts had expected. On a per-share basis, First Horizon reported profit of $0.34, narrowly missing estimates of $0.36.

First Horizon shares were nearly 6% lower at $16.44 as of 2:15 p.m. ET Wednesday. The KBW Nasdaq Regional Banking Index (KRX) moved higher.

Banks at the national and regional level have in recent earnings reports largely reported lower NII as deposit costs have risen to offset the benefit of higher interest rates on loan payments. Analysts have projected that interest rate cuts that markets predict will happen this year will negatively impact banks' NII in the coming years.

First Horizon also lowered its full-year NII outlook, projecting it to be down 2% to flat compared with the fiscal 2023 mark of $2.56 billion, down from previous estimates of a 1% to 4% increase. Analysts project NII to be roughly unchanged from last year.

Citizens Financial Group (CFG), which also reported earnings Wednesday, similarly posted lower NII than the same time last year, falling to $1.41 billion from $1.59 billion. Other regional banks reporting earnings this week include M&T Bank (MTB) and Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB).

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U.S. Bancorp (USB) shares surged in intraday trading Wednesday after the bank holding company’s second-quarter results beat analysts' expectations on the top and bottom lines.

The company reported earnings per share (EPS) of $0.97 on revenue of $6.87 billion, above Visible Alpha consensus estimates of $0.94 per share in profit on revenue of $6.79 billion. Net interest income (NII) was $4.02 billion, topping estimates of $3.96 billion. 

“This quarter we generated $6.9 billion in net revenue driven by improved linked quarter net interest income, supported by healthy deposit growth, and continued momentum in leveraging our diversified fee income platform to deepen relationships,” Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Andy Cecere said.

U.S. Bancorp shares, which had been essentially flat for the year through Tuesday's close, traded nearly 5% higher at $45.30 as of 1:40 p.m. ET Wednesday.

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A Nigerian dad has told his daughter who warned him not to speak negatively about sending her money that she should do something positive and send it back.

The man has complained that his daughter his draining him, but the daughter told him not speak negatively but the man said she should do something positive and send back his money.

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Nvidia (NVDA), Qualcomm (QCOM), and other chip stocks tumbled Wednesday following reports of potential government moves that could negatively impact the sector.

Especially hard hit were New York Registry Shares of ASML (ASML), which makes equipment to manufacture semiconductors, following reports the Biden administration is considering tightening restrictions on exports of semiconductor equipment to China.

The news overshadowed ASML's solid results on rising demand for artificial intelligence (AI) chips, with ASML reporting second-quarter net bookings jumped 24% from a year ago to 5.6 billion euros ($6.12 billion), beating forecasts.

The White House is reportedly considering imposing what’s known as the foreign direct product rule (FDPR), that would allows the U.S. to impose controls on products made outside the country that use even a small amount of American technology.

The measure could be used to target products from companies like the Netherlands’ ASML, which made nearly half of its revenue in the second quarter from sales to China and could take a hit from the move.

Separately, former President Donald Trump said in an interview with that Taiwan should pay the U.S. for defense raising concerns about how geopolitical tensions could affect the chip industry.

Taiwan dominates the global market for semiconductor manufacturing, thanks to TSMC (TSM), and American depositary receipts (ADRs) of the chip manufacturing giant plunged Wednesday as well.

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Muhd, son of Governor Babagana Umara Zulum of Borno State has reacted to reports that his brother, Umar Zulum Umara, was allegedly arrested for k+lling a Chinese national during a f+ght over a woman at a nightclub in India.

In a tweet on X, Muhd wrote: “May Allah guide you from ev+l tongues and false accusations. #prayfortruth #stoprumours.”

According to Sahara Reporters, Umara, a student at a university in New Delhi, reportedly sm+shed a bottle of alcoholic drink on the Chinese man who showed interest in the same lady as the governor’s son.

SaharaReporters learnt that the incident happened two weeks ago, while Governor Zulum alongside the governors of Adamawa and Yobe states were in Pakistan, attending a post insurgency workshop. A source close to the family told SaharaReporters that it was history repeating itself, as according to him, the governor had while at the same age as his son h+t a man to d3ath during a fight.

The source who spoke on condition of anonymity further disclosed that the r3ckless lifestyle of the members of the governor’s family is in public domain in Borno State. “Make no mistake, Governor Zulum’s son is the Nigerian governor’s son you heard about who k+lled someone in India. What happened was that the boy engaged a Chinese national in a fight over a lady at a night club in India and Zulum’s son sm+shed a bottle on his head and it led to his d3ath.

He was arrested by the police. This happened at a time the governor alongside Governor Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa and Governor Mai Buni of Yobe were in Pakistan some two weeks ago. Zulum was billed to travel to the United States after the Pakistani engagement, but he abruptly abandoned the trip and flew to India after receiving news of the tragic incident.

There in India, he made frantic efforts to resolve the matter with the Chinese parents of the deceased person; they actually obliged him but the Indian authorities insisted that the mrder was a crime against the Indian State and not the deceased or even his parents. He returned home to Nigeria to garner support and was able to enlist the current agriculture minister, Abubakar Kyari; together, they tried to convince the Indian embassy to wade into the matter but to no avail. Based on the information available to us, his son is currently in detention and would be prosecuted in due course.

The intriguing part of the story is that history has just repeated itself. Yes! Because Governor Zulum had a similar experience as a young lad, when he was about the same age as his son. Don’t also forget, just a few months before the tragic incident, the same biy was arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission operatives at the Maiduguri International Airport with excess hard currency.

But the matter was later watered down, with claims that he was contracted to supply vehicles,” the source added. SaharaReporters contacted one of Zulum’s media aides who simply replied, “I don’t know about this matter but when I get any information about it, I will relay same to you. However, don’t quote me please!”

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