Economy
47 Stocks Crash NSE by 0.99% as Neimeth Sheds 40.08% Last Week
By Dipo Olowookere
One of the healthcare shares on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals Plc, seems to have ended its honeymoon at the market.
The stock, which has enjoyed a geometric growth in the past few weeks, moving from 40 kobo per unit in March 2020 to N2.57 per share in June 2020, recording 542.5 percent appreciation in three months, led the losers’ chart of 47 members last week. In the previous week, the exchange reported 31 decliners.
Neimeth lost 40.08 percent or N1.03 per share to close for the week at N1.54 per unit after opening at N2.57 per share. The reason for the decline was because investors were booking profit and this watered down its value at the market.
NPF Microfinance Bank followed with a loss of 25.13 percent to sell at N1.40 per unit, with Prestige Assurance falling by 18.57 percent to trade at 57 kobo per share.
In addition, AIICO Insurance declined by 15.25 percent to quote at N1.00 per share, while UAC Property went down by 12.50 percent to close at 91 kobo per unit.
In the week, there were 14 price risers, lower than the 37 of the preceding week, with Honeywell topping the chart with a 17.39 percent growth to finish at N1.08 per share.
Nestle Nigeria gained 10.00 percent to end at N1,094.50 per unit, Cutix also appreciated by 10.00 percent to sell at N1.76 per share, Red Star Express improved by 9.09 percent to N3.60 per unit, while Cornerstone Insurance grew by 7.84 percent to 55 kobo per unit.
Business Post reports that the All-Share Index (ASI) and market capitalisation both depreciated by in the week by 0.99 percent to close at 24,826.75 points and N12.951 trillion.
All other indices finished lower with the exception of the main board, NSE MERI Growth, consumer goods, NSE Lotus II and industrial goods indices, which appreciated by 1.00 percent, 1.42 percent, 1.81 percent, 1.01 percent and 2.24 percent respectively, while the ASeM counter closed flat.
On the activity log, a total turnover of 1.1 billion shares worth N10.1 billion exchanged hands in 19,576 deals in contrast to the 1.1 billion stocks valued at N9.9 billion traded a week earlier in 16,616 deals.
A breakdown down of the transactions showed that the financial services sector dominated the market with 736.3 million units worth N5.5 billion traded in 9,776 deals, contributing 70.13 percent and 54.04 percent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.
The conglomerates space followed with 69.5 million shares valued at N334.5 million in 471 deals, while the consumer goods industry occupied the third place with a turnover of 66.4 million shares worth N1.4 billion in 3,130 deals.
A further analysis revealed that GTBank, FBN Holdings and FCMB were the most attractive to market participants in the week.
The three financial stocks accounted for 316.3 million shares worth N3.4 billion traded in 2,983 deals, contributing 30.13 percent and 33.08 percent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Nigeria slightly surpassed its quota set by the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in July 2026.
In the month under review, the country produced about 1.57 million barrels of crude oil per day.
It was the third consecutive month Africa’s largest oil-producing nation was meeting its monthly quota, set to stabilise the price of the commodity on the global market by the oil cartel.
Data released by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) on Wednesday showed that the 1.5 million barrels per day ceiling for Nigeria was surpassed last month.
The agency disclosed in a statement today that the country produced 1.505mbpd of crude oil and 0.17mbpd of condensate, bringing the combined daily production to 1.67mbpd.
In the month under review, the daily peak production of crude oil and condensate was 1.78mbpd, while the lowest daily production was 1.57mbpd.
Although Nigeria met its OPEC quota in the month of July, the statistics show that on a month-on-month basis, production fell by 4 per cent.
This was attributed to the decline in production due to operational challenges experienced at the Erha and Akpo fields, which impacted crude oil output during the period under review.
These disruptions constrained production volumes and contributed significantly to the overall reduction in national crude oil output.
Despite the challenges, production operations across most other producing assets remained relatively stable, with operators implementing measures aimed at maintaining production efficiency and minimising the impact of operational constraints, NUPRC stated.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The over 9 billion shares of Lasaco Assurance Plc issued to shareholders of the company via a rights issue have been listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited.
The equities were brought to Customs Street on Wednesday by the organisation, increasing its total issued and fully paid-up share capital.
Lasaco Assurance, which scaled the recapitalisation hurdle of the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) in July 2026, raised fresh capital from the capital market to shore up its capital base.
The underwriting firm got about N18.5 billion from the rights issue, which involved the issuance of 9,236,321,546 ordinary shares at a unit price of N2.00.
The exercise was on the basis of five new ordinary shares for every existing six ordinary shares held as of the close of business on Friday, February 20, 2026.
Confirming the listing of the additional stocks of Lasaco Assurance today, the Head of Issuer Regulation Department of NGX RegCo, Mr Godstime Iwenekhai, announced in a circular that, “Trading licence holders are hereby notified that an additional 9,236,321,546 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each of Lasaco Assurance Plc were today, Wednesday, August 12, 2026, listed on the daily official list of Nigerian Exchange Limited.
“The additional shares arose from the company’s rights issue of 9,236,321,546 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N2.00 per share on the basis of five new ordinary shares for every existing six ordinary shares held as of the close of business on Friday, February 20, 2026.
“With the listing of the additional 9,236,321,546 ordinary shares, the total issued and fully paid-up share capital of Lasaco Assurance Plc has now increased from 11,083,585,855 to 20,319,907,401 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) has said the successful recapitalisation of the insurance industry will strengthen the sector’s ability to support financial stability and economic growth.
NIA Chairman, Mrs Ebelechukwu Nwachukwu, said a well-capitalised insurance industry would be better positioned to meet its obligations promptly, underwrite complex and large-scale risks and serve as a dependable pillar of the Nigerian economy.
She made the remarks while commending the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) for its structured implementation of the new minimum capital requirements under the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA) 2025.
Mrs Nwachukwu said NAICOM’s clear guidelines, systematic verification process, defined timelines and rigorous supervision had provided operators with a credible framework for navigating the recapitalisation exercise.
She described the outcome as a major milestone for the industry and congratulated the 43 insurance and reinsurance companies that have successfully met the prescribed minimum capital requirements.
According to her, the exercise represents “a major win not just for regulators and operators, but for policyholders, investors and the wider Nigerian economy.”
Mrs Nwachukwu said the association would continue to work with NAICOM and other stakeholders to consolidate the gains of the exercise, with emphasis on sustainable industry growth, stronger market conduct and improved consumer confidence.
The official also expressed solidarity with the eight companies still undergoing final verification and regulatory review, urging them to remain confident as NAICOM completes the process within the 14-day review period.
The NIA chairman assured policyholders and the wider business community that the insurance industry would emerge from the recapitalisation exercise stronger, more resilient and better positioned to contribute to Nigeria’s economic development.
