Economy
Crude Oil Rises as US Producers Hold Back Supply
By Adedapo Adesanya
Crude oil prices appreciated on Wednesday night after dropping earlier in the day following the United States’ call to the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies (OPEC+) to increase supply to support the global recovery from the pandemic.
This action lifted the Brent crude by 96 cents or 1.33 per cent to $71.57 per barrel and pushed the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) higher by $1.07 or 1.57 per cent to $69.36 per barrel.
The White House on Wednesday called on the oil-producing allies to boost production in an effort to combat climbing fuel prices, amid concerns that rising inflation could derail the economic recovery from COVID-19.
It was revealed that the Mr Joe Biden administration spoke with representatives from OPEC’s de facto leader, Saudi Arabia, this week, as well as with representatives from the United Arab Emirates and other OPEC+ members.
The White House said the group’s July agreement to boost production by 400,000 barrels per day on a monthly basis beginning in August and stretching into 2022 was “simply not enough” during a “critical moment in the global recovery.”
This led to oil prices dropping but this changed when the White House clarified that it would not call on US producers to increase crude output and that efforts to increase OPEC production were a longer-range plan.
OPEC+ made the unprecedented decision in April 2020 to remove nearly 10 million barrels per day from the market in an effort to support prices, while US producers also scaled back production, now it has dropped to about 6 million barrels per day.
These supply cuts, coupled with a demand recovery, have pushed Brent close to $80 per barrel, although the contract has pulled back slightly from that level in recent sessions due to the resurgence of the coronavirus.
The market also got support after the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported a crude oil inventory decline of 400,000 barrels for the week to August 6, significantly less than expected.
This was lower than the unexpected build of 3.6 million barrels reported for the previous week that weighed prices down last week.
Analysts had expected an inventory draw of 1.05 million barrels for the first week of August.
A day earlier, the American Petroleum Institute (API) had reported a modest inventory draw of a little over 800,000 barrels per day.
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.
