Economy
Crude Slides as OPEC Production Rises in September
By Adedapo Adesanya
The major crude benchmarks took a nosedive of more than 3 per cent at the international oil market on Thursday as data showed that production from the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies increased in September.
The Brent crude futures fell by 3.48 per cent or $1.42 to trade at $40.88 per barrel while the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures depreciated by 3.8 per cent or $1.59 to $38.64 per barrel.
OPEC+’s September seaborne exports jumped to 22.84 million barrels per day from the 22.11 million barrels per day exported by the cartel through the sea in August.
For OPEC specifically, its exports rose from 17.53 million barrels per day in August to 18.2 million barrels per day in September.
A Reuters survey showed that OPEC’s production for September was up 160,000 barrels per day from the previous month but still showed that the oil cartel is still in compliance with its planned cuts.
The increase in the production came mostly from Iran and Libya, both of whom are exempted from the production quotas due to various unrest.
The market is interpreting this production increase as a viable threat to any oil market rebalancing especially as worries about rising cases of COVID-19 worldwide continue to feed expectations for a slowdown in energy demand.
Crude oil investors will continue to monitor rising cases and its impact on demand. In Europe, countries have started implementing or planning to reinstitute new social-distance restrictions as COVID-19 cases climb.
According to reports, in Spain, the majority of the country’s regions will limit public service and retail to 50 per cent capacity, while France may introduce new restrictions.
Spain, France and the Netherlands have the highest rate of new cases over the last seven days of the world’s largest countries.
Investors also watched developments among US lawmakers over a possible new round of coronavirus stimulus, which could also provide a potential lift to the energy sector, providing funding to out-of-work Americans and troubled businesses.
Also affecting prices are expectations for more oil from Libya which have continued to weigh on the market following Libya military commander Khalifa Haftar lifting an eight-month blockade on crude exports.
The uptick of production in Libya, which promises to restore 1 million daily barrels in an already oversupplied market, raises additional supply concern especially during this time of weak demand.
Also, the market, which hopes for a coronavirus vaccine, was met with disappointing news as reports show that two separate vaccine trials have resulted in unpleasant side effects, including high fever, body aches, bad headaches, and exhaustion.
Analysts noted that news of working vaccines will be crucial in stabilizing the oil market and would impact the pace of economic recovery.
Economy
BNB Price Reflects Changing Dynamics in the Digital Asset Market
Economy
NASD Unlisted Security Index Crosses 4,000-point Benchmark Again
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange achieved a milestone on Friday, April 24, 2026, after five securities on the platform helped with a 1.85 per cent growth.
Data showed that the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) again crossed the 4,000-point benchmark yesterday.
The index chalked up 73.64 points during the trading day to close at 4,052.59 points compared with the preceding session’s 3,978.95 points, while the market capitalisation added N5.38 billion to finish at N2.424 trillion versus Thursday’s closing value of N2.380 trillion.
The price gainers were led by Okitipupa Plc, which grew by N25.00 to sell at N305.00 per share compared with the previous price of N280.00 per share. Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc gained N6.92 to close at N76.26 per unit versus N69.34 per unit, Afriland Properties Plc appreciated by N1.00 to N17.00 per share from N18.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc improved by 55 Kobo to N99.55 per unit from N99.00 per unit, and Food Concepts Plc increased by 5 Kobo to N2.70 per share from N2.65 per share.
However, there was a price loser, MRS Oil, which dipped by N21.75 to N195.75 per unit from N217.50 per unit.
During the final session of the week, the value of securities jumped 75.2 per cent to N41.3 million from N23.6 million units, and the number of deals expanded by 62.9 per cent to 44 deals from 27 deals, while the volume of securities declined marginally by 0.9 per cent to 447,403 units from 451,522 units.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc was the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) 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 traded for N1.2 billion.
GNI was also the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 59.6 million units transacted for N4.0 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.8 million units exchanged for N1.9 billion.
Economy
Naira Slips to N1,358/$1 as FX Reserves, Policy Uncertainty Concerns
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was not a good day for the Nigerian Naira in the currency market on Friday, April 24, as its value depreciated against the major foreign currencies at the close of transactions.
In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), it lost N4.53 or 0.33 per cent against the United States Dollar yesterday to trade at N1,358.44/$1, in contrast to the N1,353.91/$1 it was exchanged on Thursday.
Equally, the domestic currency slipped against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the session by N8.14 to close at N1,834.02/£1, compared with the previous rate of N1,825.88/£1 and dropped N8.01 against the Euro to sell at N1,590.73/€1 versus N1,582.72/€1.
Also, the Naira depreciated against the US Dollar at the GTBank FX desk on Friday by N4 to quote at N1,370/$1 compared with the previous session’s N1,366/$1, and at the parallel market, it depleted by N5 to settle at N1,380/$1 versus the preceding day’s N1,375/$1.
Data published by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) indicated that NFEM interbank turnover surged to N43.562 million across 68 deals, up from N28.117 million the previous day.
Despite the CBN’s reassurance that the recent drop in external reserves is not worrisome, the market remains unsettled by persistent concerns over liquidity constraints, policy transparency, and weakening confidence in Nigeria’s FX market as gross reserves continue to decline to $48.4 billion.
The outlook for the Dollar appears supported by broader macro risks, including elevated oil prices tied to the tanker traffic disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and a continued US-Iran standoff over ceasefire negotiations.
A look at the digital currency market showed that investors are sitting on the edge as the US Dollar rebounded amid geopolitical and inflation risks despite continued inflows into US spot bitcoin Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).
Solana (SOL) rose by 1.2 per cent to sell $86.45, Cardano (ADA) appreciated by 1.1 per cent to $0.2517, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 0.9 per cent to $0.0989, Ripple (XRP) improved by 0.3 per cent to $1.43, Ethereum (ETH) soared by 0.2 per cent to $2,316.83, and Binance Coin (BNB) chalked up 0.1 per cent to sell for $637.44.
However, TRON (TRX) depreciated by 1.3 per cent to $0.3235, and Bitcoin (BTC) lost 0.2 per cent to close at $77,562.27, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.
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