Economy
Crude Oil Prices Dip on Continued Rate Hike Worries
By Adedapo Adesanya
Crude oil prices went down on Friday as traders worried that future interest rate hikes in the United States could weigh on demand.
Brent crude futures lost $2.14 or 2.5 per cent to trade at $83.00 a barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude shrank by $2.15 or 2.7 per cent to per barrel $76.34.
On a week-on-week basis, Brent fell by 3.9 per cent as the US crude fell by 4.2 per cent.
The market reacted after two US Federal Reserve officials warned additional hikes in borrowing costs are essential to curb inflation.
Speaking on Thursday, Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said in a virtual speech to a Global Interdependence Center conference that the US Fed Reserve “has come an appreciable way in bringing policy from a very accommodative stance to a restrictive one, but I believe we have more work to do,”.
“The incoming data have not changed my view that we will need to bring the fed funds rate above 5 per cent and hold it there for some time” in a bid to get inflation back to the central bank’s 2 per cent target.
Earlier in the month, the US central bank opted to moderate the pace of what had been a torrid barrage of rate hikes and lifted its benchmark overnight interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point to the 4.50 per cent-4.75 per cent range.
The central bank also signalled more rate hikes are coming to help lower overly high inflation levels back to the target.
The new sentiments lifted the US Dollar, making oil more expensive for holders of other currencies.
Various signs of ample supply also weighed on the market. Russian oil producers expect to maintain current volumes of crude oil exports, despite the government’s plan to cut oil output in March.
The latest US data supplies, released on Wednesday, showed crude inventories in the week to February 10 rose by 16.3 million barrels to 471.4 million barrels, their highest level since June 2021.
Support came from moves this week by the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to raise their forecasts for global oil demand growth this year, citing expectations for more Chinese demand.
Also, Saudi Arabia’s energy minister said the current deal by OPEC+, which groups OPEC producers with Russia and others, to cut oil output targets by 2 million barrels per day would be locked in until the end of the year, adding he remained cautious on Chinese demand.
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.
