Economy
GTCO, Others Restore Stability to Stock Market by 1.63%
By Dipo Olowookere
Normalcy returned to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited on Thursday with a 1.63 per cent growth after two days of selling pressure, which made the bears dominate the market.
Gains reported by shares in the financial and consumer goods sectors lifted the bourse during the session as investors chewed on the new policies of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to address the foreign exchange (FX) crisis in the country, which has contributed to high inflation.
The banking counter increased yesterday by 7.82 per cent, the consumer goods index appreciated by 4.37 per cent, the insurance sector grew by 2.18 per cent, the industrial goods space gained 0.35 per cent, and the energy counter advanced by 0.02 per cent.
As a result, the All-Share Index (ASI) was elevated by 1,647.80 points to 102,802.25 points from 101,154.45 points, and the market capitalisation went up by N902 billion to close at N56.260 trillion compared with the previous day’s N55.358 trillion.
Investor sentiment turned bullish during the trading day after 53 stocks ended on the gainers’ chart and 18 stocks finished on the losers’ table, implying a positive market breadth index.
The quartet of Caverton, Chams, GTCO, and Veritas Kapital appreciated by 10.00 per cent each to trade at N1.87, N2.64, N40.70, and 66 Kobo apiece, as NASCON gained 9.98 per cent to close at N67.75.
Conversely, Deap Capital weakened by 9.88 per cent to 73 Kobo, CWG declined by 9.87 per cent to N6.85, RT Briscoe lost 9.86 per cent to trade at 64 Kobo, University Press depleted by 9.76 per cent to N3.33, and McNichols crashed by 9.43 per cent to N1.44.
Business Post reports that Universal Insurance was the most active stock on Thursday, selling 113.8 million units for N42.5 million, Transcorp traded 91.0 million units worth N1.2 billion, Zenith Bank exchanged 74.3 million units valued at N2.8 billion, UBA transacted 69.2 million units worth N1.7 billion, and Veritas Kapital traded 58.7 million units valued at N36.0 million.
When trading activities were wrapped up for the day, investors had bought and sold 861.0 million equities valued at N12.2 billion in 12,851 deals as against the 749.1 million equities worth N22.5 billion traded in 14,288 deals in the midweek session, representing a rise in the volume of transactions by 14.94 per cent, a decline in the value of transactions by 45.78 per cent, and a decrease in the number of deals by 10.06 per cent.
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.
