Economy
Crude Oil Jumps as EU Slams Fresh Sanctions on Russia
By Adedapo Adesanya
Crude oil prices went up on Wednesday after the European Union (EU) agreed to an additional round of sanctions threatening Russian oil flows that could tighten global crude supplies.
During the session, Brent crude futures jumped by $1.33 or 1.84 per cent to $73.52 a barrel and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose by $1.70 or 2.48 per cent to $70.29 per barrel.
EU ambassadors agreed on a 15th package of sanctions on Russia over its war against Ukraine, targeting its shadow tanker fleet and Chinese firms making drones for the country.
The sanctions would target vessels from third countries supporting Russia’s war in Ukraine and add more individuals and entities to the sanctions list. It will not be adopted until after foreign ministers approve the package on Monday.
The shadow fleet has aided Russia in bypassing the $60 per barrel price cap imposed by the G7 on Russian seaborne crude oil in 2022 and has helped keep Russian oil flowing.
Prices were supported by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) which reported an estimated inventory decline of 1.4 million barrels for the week to December 6. In fuels, however, the EIA estimated sizable builds.
The crude oil inventory figure compares with a draw of 5.1 million barrels for the previous week that pushed prices higher for a while but the gains soon got erased by weak global demand growth prospects.
A day before the EIA, the American Petroleum Institute (API) had estimated inventory changes at a positive 499,000 barrels for the week to December 6.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) cut its 2024 global oil demand growth forecast for a fifth straight month and by the largest amount.
In its December report, the cartel expects 2024 global oil demand to rise by 1.61 million barrels per day, down from 1.82 million barrels per day last month.
OPEC also cut its 2025 growth estimate to 1.45 million barrels per day from 1.54 million barrels per day.
The 210,000 barrels per day cut in the 2024 figure is the largest of the five reductions OPEC has made in its monthly reports since August. In July, OPEC had expected world demand to rise by 2.25 million barrels per day.
Weak demand, particularly in top importer China, and non-OPEC+ supply growth were two factors behind the move.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange rose by 0.24 per cent on Wednesday, December 17, pulling the Unlisted Security Index (NSI) up by 8.62 points to 3,614.64 points from 3,606.02 points.
In the same vein, the market capitalisation added N4.72 billion to close at N2.164 billion compared with the N2.160 trillion it ended on Tuesday.
The growth was inspired by four securities, which finished on the gainers’ log, neutralising the losses printed by two other securities on the trading platform.
MRS Oil Plc gained N17.90 on Wednesday to end at N196.90 per unit versus N179.00 per unit, NASD Plc appreciated by 59 Kobo to N58.50 per share from N57.91 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc added 15 Kobo to sell at N60.19 per unit versus N60.04 per unit, and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc rose by 6 Kobo to 64 Kobo per share from 58 Kobo per share.
On the flip side, Golden Capital Plc extended its loss by 76 Kobo to end at N7.75 per unit versus N8.51 per unit, and Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc slipped by 35 Kobo to N39.65 per share from N40.00 per share.
Yesterday, the volume of transactions increased by 737.3 per cent to 20.4 million units from 2.4 million units, but the value of trades fell by 33.8 per cent to N72.2 million from N109.1 million, and the number of deals slid by 62.5 per cent to 21 deals from 56 deals.
Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company (InfraCredit) Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 5.8 billion units sold for N16.4 billion, the second position was occupied by Okitipupa Plc with 178.9 million units transacted for N9.5 billion, and the third place was taken by MRS Oil Plc with 36.1 million units worth N4.9 billion.
InfraCredit Plc was also the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 5.8 billion units traded for N16.4 billion, followed by IGI Plc with 1.2 billion units valued at N420.7 million, and Impresit Bakolori Plc with 536.9 million units worth N524.9 million.
By Dipo Olowookere
A 0.26 per cent growth was achieved by the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited on Wednesday on the back of sustained bargain-hunting by investors.
This happened despite a pocket of profit-taking, with industrial goods losing 0.63 per cent and the energy index shedding 0.05 per cent.
But the insurance space increased by 2.02 per cent, the banking counter appreciated by 1.48 per cent, the commodity sector improved by 0.48 per cent, and the consumer goods segment rose by 0.03 per cent.
Consequently, the All-Share Index (ASI) went up by 383.71 points to 149,842.82 points from 149,459.11 points and the market capitalisation jumped by N244 billion to N95.525 trillion from N95.281 trillion.
The market breadth index remained positive after the bourse finished with 38 price gainers and 23 price losers, indicating a strong investor sentiment.
The quartet of First Holdco, Lasaco Assurance, Veritas Kapital, and Prestige Assurance gained 10.00 per cent to quote at N39.60, N2.75, N1.76, and N1.65, respectively, while Mecure Industries grew by 9.92 per cent to N50.40.
Conversely, Living Trust Mortgage Bank lost 10.00 per cent to close at N3.15, International Energy Insurance dropped 9.92 per cent to trade at N2.27, McNichols shrank by 6.90 per cent to N2.97, Omatek decreased by 6.84 per cent to N1.09, and Chams dipped by 6.41 per cent to N2.92.
The activity level witnessed a significant surge at midweek, with Ecobank trading 5.3 billion units for N168.7 billion.
Further, First Holdco sold 108.2 million units worth N4.2 billion, Sterling Holdings exchanged 87.3 million units valued at N606.2 million, FCMB transacted 74.3 million units worth N783.6 million, and Access Holdings sold 41.5 million units for N841.4 million.
At the close of trades, market participants traded 5.9 billion units valued at N216.2 billion in 25,205 deals compared with the 1.0 billion units worth N21.8 billion traded in 23,701 deals a day earlier, showing a rise in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 490.00 per cent, 891.74 per cent, and 6.35 per cent, respectively.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira depreciated against the United States Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) on Wednesday, December 17, by N3.67 or 0.25 per cent, closing at N1,455.49/$1, in contrast to Tuesday’s closing price of N1,451.82/$1.
Also, the local currency weakened against the Euro in the official market at midweek by 98 Kobo to close at N1,706.72/€1 versus the previous session’s price of N1,705.74/€1, but improved against the Pound Sterling by 75 Kobo to trade at N1,943.28/£1 compared with the N1,943.98/£1 it traded a day earlier.
At the GTBank forex counter, the Nigerian currency lost N3 against the greenback to finish at N1,463/$1 versus N1,460/$1 and in the parallel market, it remained unchanged at N1,475/$1.
Thin US dollar inflows from exporters, non-bank corporate, foreign portfolio investors and absence of immediate intervention of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to strengthen supply triggered fresh pressure.
This is coming off the back of decline in inflows through the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market which decreased to $716.3 million last week from $844.70 million in the previous week , a 15 per cent drop in a week.
The intervention comes as the CBN expect inflows from Detty December to alleviate need for FX demand, but exorbitant local prices may be keeping spending at bay.
Regardless of the seasonal demand, positive FX support for the local currency through 2025 signals a deliberate action to ensure the local currency maintains the trading range amidst growing external reserves. Latest data showed that gross external reserves position advanced to $45.47 billion, reflecting a 11.2 per cent Year-to-Date (YTD) gain.
In the cryptocurrency market, there was selling pressure as traders liquidated positions amid a short-rally, leading Litecoin (LTC) to slip by 5.2 per cent to close at $75.12m, as Cardano (ADA) depreciated by 5.0 per cent to $0.3619, and Dogecoin (DOGE) lost 4.8 per cent to finish at $0.1247.
In addition, Ripple (XRP) depreciated by 4.7 per cent to $1.83, Solana (SOL) crashed by 4.1 per cent to $122.62, Ethereum (ETH) went down by 3.9 per cent to $2,826.62, Binance Coin (BNB) fell by 3.4 per cent to $833.07, and Bitcoin (BTC) tumbled by 0.5 per cent to sell at $86,436.66, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.
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