Economy
Crude Oil Weakens on Bearish US, German Economic Outcomes
By Adedapo Adesanya
Crude oil depreciated on Monday as some bearish economic news from the United States and Germany offset support from a weaker US Dollar and forecasts for increased heating demand for energy from a winter storm.
Consequently, Brent futures fell by 21 cents or 0.3 per cent to settle at $76.30 a barrel and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude depleted by 40 cents or 0.5 per cent to trade at $73.56 per barrel.
In the US, the world’s biggest economy, new orders for manufactured goods fell in November amid weakness in demand for commercial aircraft while business spending on equipment appeared to have slowed in the fourth quarter, according to data from the Commerce Department’s Census Bureau.
In Germany, Europe’s biggest economy, annual inflation rose more than forecast in December due to higher food prices and a smaller drop in energy prices than in previous months.
To combat higher inflation, central banks often boost interest rates, which can slow economic growth and demand for energy.
Meanwhile, the market is looking at the weather as a winter storm occured across the US, causing prices for natural gas and heating fuel to spike 10 per cent on Monday, while diesel futures closed at their highest level since October.
Severe travel disruptions were expected across the storm’s path and officials urged drivers to stay off the roads if possible.
Governors in several states, including Kansas, Kentucky, Arkansas, West Virginia, Virginia and Maryland, have declared states of emergency.
Support also came as the US Dollar slumped more than 1 per cent against a basket of other currencies as President-elect Donald Trump reportedly mulled tariffs that would only be applied to critical imports, potentially a relief for countries that were expecting broader levies.
The US Dollar, however, pared much of that decline after Mr Trump denied the newspaper report.
A weaker US currency makes dollar-priced commodities like oil cheaper for buyers using other currencies.
In China, the world’s second-biggest economy, the Yuan ended the domestic session at its weakest level in 16 months against the US Dollar, weighed down by trade concerns.
In a sign of firmer demand expectations, Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter, raised crude prices for Asian buyers in February for the first time in three months.
Sudan, meanwhile, lifted a nearly year-long force majeure on the transport of crude oil from its neighbour South Sudan to a port on the Red Sea after security conditions improved.
Also, the Biden administration plans to impose more sanctions on Russia over its war on Ukraine, taking aim at its oil revenues with action against tankers carrying Russian crude
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigeria raised its crude oil production by 50,000 barrels per day to around 1.5 million barrels per day in December 2024, according to the latest output survey by Reuters.
The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) had said the country’s oil output rose to 1.48 million barrels per day in November from 1.33 million barrels per day in the previous month.
With the latest addition, this has brought the output count of Africa’s largest oil producer to 1.5 million barrels per day.
The Reuters survey – based on flows data from financial group LSEG, Kpler, OPEC and other sources – found that Nigeria exceeded its target by the largest amount.
It added that the production boost in the final month of last year came as a result of higher domestic usage in refineries such as Dangote and higher exports.
Business Post reports that about 395,000 barrels per day of crude oil were delivered to the Dangote Refinery in December under the crude-for-Naira deal with the federal government.
Also, Nigeria said in December it had resumed some operations at its Warri refinery after years of shutdowns.
The general OPEC basket pumped 26.46 million barrels per day last month, down 50,000 barrels per day from November, the survey showed on Tuesday, with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) providing the biggest drop (90,000 barrels per day) because of field maintenance followed by Iran which fell by 70,000 barrels per day.
The modest decline in output came as the wider OPEC+ group kept production cuts in place in December due to global demand concerns and rising output outside the group.
OPEC’s top two producers, Saudi Arabia and Iraq, kept output steady and the group pumped below its implied target for the nine members covered by supply agreements. Libya and Venezuela are exempted.
OPEC+ decided last month to postpone its plan to start raising output until April 2025.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
In the first 10 months of 2024, the aggregate foreign exchange (FX) inflows into Nigeria increased by 41 per cent on a year-on-year basis to $79.8 billion from $55.6 billion in the same period of the preceding year.
This information was revealed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) through its Economic Report for October 2024.
The apex bank disclosed that in the period under consideration, the nation recorded a 1.4 per cent decline in aggregated FX outflows to $29.84 billion from the $30.29 billion posted in the first 10 months of 2023.
As for the net forex inflows, it rose by 65.7 per cent to $46.92 billion from $28.31 billion in the corresponding period of 2023, with inflows from autonomous sources growing by 0.06 per cent to $35.82 billion from $34.4 billion, outflows from autonomous sources expanding by 195 per cent to $7.08 billion from $2.4 billion, and the net forex inflows from autonomous sources jumped by 73 per cent to $39.7 billion from $22.93 billion.
“Foreign exchange flows through the economy amounted to a net inflow of $4.86 billion, relative to $6.35 billion in September 2024. Aggregate foreign exchange inflow increased to $9.15 billion, from $8.59 billion in the preceding month.
“Similarly, foreign exchange outflow increased to $4.29 billion, from $2.24 billion in the preceding month.
“Foreign exchange inflow through the bank declined to $4.48 billion, from $5.22 billion in the preceding month, while autonomous inflow increased to $4.67 billion, from $3.37 billion in the preceding month.
“Outflow through the bank rose to $3.73 billion, from $1.84 billion, while autonomous outflow fell to $0.56 billion, from $0.40 billion in September 2024.
“Consequently, a net inflow of $4.11 billion was recorded through autonomous sources compared with $2.97 billion in September 2024, while the bank recorded a net inflow of $0.75 billion, relative to $3.38 billion in the preceding month,” parts of the report said.
It was also revealed that the CBN inflows soared by 55 per cent between January 2024 and October 2024 to $32.94 billion from $21.25 billion in the same period of the previous year, as outflows through the central bank shrank by 1.11 per cent to $25.74 billion from $26.03 billion, leaving the net FX inflow up by 556.8 per cent to $7.16 billion from -$1.09 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange extended its presence in the green territory with a 0.07 per cent growth on Tuesday, January 7, spurred by a gain recorded by Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc.
At the close of business yesterday, the Nigerian securities depository company increased its share price by 15 Kobo to end at N23.20 per unit compared with the previous day’s N23.05 per unit.
As a result of this, the market capitalisation of the bourse went up by N750 million to finish at N1.056 trillion like the preceding session, and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) expanded by 2.18 points to wrap the session at 3,080.29 points compared with 3,080.47 points recorded at the previous session.
The market was relatively quiet on Tuesday as investors reconsidered their exposure to unlisted securities, with the volume of transactions declining by 96.8 per cent to 59,432 units from the 1.8 million units achieved a day earlier.
In the same vein, the value of trades recorded yesterday decreased by 89.9 per cent to N2.1 million from N20.7 million, and the number of deals slumped by 79.3 per cent to six deals from 29 deals.
FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc ended the session as the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 1.9 million units worth N74.2 million, trailed by 11 Plc with 12,963 units valued at N3.2 million, and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI )Plc with 10.7 million units sold for N2.1 million.
IGI Plc finished the trading session as the most active stock by volume (year-to-date) with 10.6 million units valued at N2.1 million, followed by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc with 1.9 million units sold for at N74.2 million, and Acorn Petroleum Plc with 1.2 million units worth N1.9 million.
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