Economy
Crude Closes 2020 Positive Despite COVID-19, Price Crash Impacts
By Adedapo Adesanya
Oil prices ended the year 2020 on a positive note, in a year marred by the coronavirus pandemic and an oil price crash.
On Thursday, the Brent crude gained 17 cents or 0.33 per cent to sell at $51.80 per barrel, while the United States’ West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rose 7 cents or 0.18 per cent to trade at $48.42 per barrel.
Futures might have ended 2020 on a positive note but they suffered a hefty yearly fall, only partially recovering from the hit to crude demand from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Brent, according to market analysis, fell 21.5 per cent for the year, its largest annual drop since 2015 while the WTI fell 20.5 per cent in 2020, its second annual fall in three years.
In terms of month and quarter, Brent crude rose 8.9 per cent in December and 26.5 per cent in the final quarter of the year while WTI saw a 7 per cent rise in December and gained more than 20 per cent for the fourth quarter.
Oil prices were hit during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and this was worsened as Saudi Arabia and Russia engaged in a price war that flooded the world with oil, dropping prices to unprecedented levels.
However, efforts from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) in curbing production excesses helped the market recover a little after instituting a record cut that took away 10 per cent of global supply. This was later tapered in batches with output level expected to rise from January 1.
OPEC+ will meet on Monday and is likely to further relax its output curbs, adding another 500,000 barrels a day to global supply.
Business Post reported that crude was buoyed Wednesday by a larger-than-expected drop in U.S. crude inventories, as well as weakness in the US dollar.
Crude oil inventories decreased by 1.2 per cent for the week ending December 25, according to data released by the Energy Information Administration (EIA). Inventories decreased by 6.1 million barrels to 493.5 million barrels, more than the market expectation of a fall of 2.1 million barrels.
A weaker dollar is typically seen as a positive for commodities priced in the US unit, making them cheaper to buyers using other currencies. Expectations for a lower trend for the dollar have boosted expectations among bulls for further gains for crude and other commodities in 2021.
Next year, there are expectations that oil demand will rebound more slowly than initially anticipated as the aviation sector takes longer to recover from the coronavirus hit.
Global consumption is expected to come in at 96.9 million barrels a day next year which is up from the 91.2 million barrels per day forecast for 2020, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
On its part, OPEC final 2020 oil demand forecast stood at 9.8 million barrels per day lower than 2019 and projects oil demand to bounce back by 6.2 million barrels per day in 2021.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) has unveiled a unified Taxpayer Identification (Tax ID) system for all taxable persons across the country as part of efforts to strengthen tax administration and improve transparency.
The agency announced the development in a public notice issued jointly with the Joint Revenue Board (JRB) on Monday.
According to the notice, the initiative is backed by Sections 6, 7, and 8 of the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025, which mandate every taxable person in Nigeria to obtain a Tax ID, in a wider move to expand the country’s tax base.
The NRS said the new framework is designed to create a centralised and harmonised taxpayer database that would enhance interactions between taxpayers and revenue authorities at both federal and sub-national levels.
“The Tax ID will serve as a single, unified identity for all taxpayers, enabling seamless interaction with tax authorities at both federal and sub-national levels. It is designed to consolidate taxpayer records, eliminate duplication, and ensure more efficient management of tax-related information,” the agency stated.
The revenue agency explained that the new system would simplify tax compliance procedures, including taxpayer registration, filing of returns, and payment processes.
According to the NRS, the framework is also expected to improve accountability and reduce leakages in tax collection by creating better visibility and tracking of taxpayer information nationwide.
“The initiative will simplify tax compliance processes, including registration, tax filing, and payment procedures. The system will improve transparency by enabling better visibility and tracking of taxpayer records while reducing leakages and improving accountability in tax collection. The framework will also harmonise taxpayer information across all levels of government,” the notice added.
The agency further disclosed that the new Tax ID system would replace the existing Tax Identification Number (TIN) Validation API currently used by Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), financial institutions, and other organisations for taxpayer verification.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Three bellwether stocks weakened the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 1.31 per cent on Monday, May 18.
This brought the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) by 54.71 points to 4,133.70 points from 4,188.41 points, and shrank the market capitalisation by N32.73 billion to N2.473 trillion from N2.506 trillion.
Yesterday, FrieslandCampina Wamco Plc contracted by N12.45 to sell at N146.55 per share compared with last Friday’s closing price of N159.00 per share, Central Securities and Clearing System (CSCS) Plc declined by N2.34 to N70.00 per unit from N72.34 per unit, and NASD Plc lost 50 Kobo to trade at N34.50 per share versus N35.00 per share.
The trio overpowered the N5.56 gained Newrest Asl Plc. This stock ended the trading session at N61.15 per unit, in contrast to the previous session’s N55.59 per unit.
During the trading day, the volume of securities traded by investors slid by 56.1 per cent to 514,142 units from 1.2 million units, and the value of securities dropped 29.8 per cent to close at N17.4 million versus N29.8 million, while the number of deals jumped 12.5 per cent to 27 deals from 24 deals.
Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 60.8 million units exchanged for N4.1 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.9 million units traded for N1.9 billion.
GNI Plc also ended the day as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, trailed by Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units valued at N415.7 million, and Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc with 400 million units transacted for N1.2 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was a horrible day for the Nigerian Naira in the different segments of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Monday, May 15, as its value further weakened against the United States Dollar.
In the black market window, the Naira lost N5 against the Dollar yesterday to sell for N1,390/$1 compared with the previous value of N1,385/$1, but at the GTBank forex counter, it remained unchanged at N1,383/$1.
In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), the Nigerian currency depreciated against the greenback by N2.66 or 0.19 per cent to sell for N1,373.70/$1 compared to last Friday’s rate of N1,371.04/$1.
Equally, it fell against the Pound Sterling in the same market segment by N9.05 to trade at N1,839.66/£1 versus N1,830.61/£1, and lost N5.42 on the Euro to close at N1,600.49/€1 versus N1,595.07/€1.
The performance of the local currency during the session indicates early worries despite all signals pointing to stability, amid improved Dollar sales by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), with steady, higher oil receipts to bolster the nation’s reserves.
Activity at the market showed that turnover rose 57.3 per cent to $76.29 million on Monday from $48.49 million posted on Friday.
Over the weekend, S&P raised Nigeria’s credit ratings for the first time since 2012 and highlighted improved FX market liquidity and $10 billion turnover recorded in April 2026 as one of the major gains of the CBN-led FX reforms.
The agency said the liberalisation of the exchange rate has bolstered access to foreign currency and enabled a market-driven exchange-rate environment while supporting investor and consumer confidence.
Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market was bullish on Monday as investors monitored developments in the Iran conflict and weighed the impact of surging oil prices on inflation and US interest-rate expectations.
Ethereum (ETH) gained 0.7 per cent to trade at $2,134.10, Cardano (ADA) rose by 0.6 per cent to $0.2515, Solana (SOL) expanded by 0.3 per cent to $85.11, Binance Coin (BNB) jumped 0.2 per cent to $643.29, TRON (TRX) increased by 0.03 per cent to $0.3565, and Bitcoin (BTC) advanced by 0.02 per cent to $76,912.12.
On the flip side, Dogecoin (DOGE) slid by 1.5 per cent to $0.1044, and Ripple (XRP) decreased by 0.5 per cent to $1.38, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 apiece.
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