Economy
I Know Middle East Crisis Will Spike Inflation, Affect Purchasing Power—Tinubu
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
President Bola Tinubu on Sunday expressed concerns over the negative impact the crisis in the Middle East would have on the Nigerian economy.
While addressing the Vice President, Mr Kashim Shettima, and 23 state governors who visited him in Lagos at the weekend, he said efforts are being made to ensure the citizens, especially the vulnerable, are catered to by the government.
“I know this Middle East crisis will spike inflation and affect our purchasing power. The labour union and others will be gearing to ask us to support more due to the effect of the Middle East war and crisis,” Mr Tinubu was quoted as saying in a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga.
The President also disclosed that his administration was intensifying efforts to tackle the challenges of insecurity across various parts of the country, assuring that the safety and well-being of citizens featured at the meetings held in the United Kingdom.
President Tinubu returned to Nigeria from a two-day state visit to the UK. He moved to Lagos for Eid al-Fitr, where the delegation went for a courtesy visit.
“Your presence here today and the number show your sincerity, commitment and value for friendship and togetherness.
“The next phase of our struggle is staring us in the face, and that is the challenge of insecurity in the country.
“I am making all the efforts to ensure that we collectively share the joy of our victory over tyranny. Insecurity is an enemy of development, progress, and prosperity. I am glad you are all mindful of the challenge.
“For me, I have committed to strengthening further the contacts and networks that are necessary. One of the major discussions in the United Kingdom was on equipment and support.
“I can report to you that yesterday, again, I had a lengthy discussion with French President Emmanuel Macron. They are collaborating with us for equipment and support. I am also making frantic efforts to contact other nations,” Mr Tinubu further stated.
He urged the state governors to remain steadfast and resilient in translating their ideas and visions into policies and programmes that directly impact citizens’ livelihoods, and to support the government in tackling the “tyranny” of criminals, advising them to provide further incentives to cushion the inflationary impact of the war in the Middle East on energy and transportation prices.
The President thanked Mr Shettima for the condolence visit to Borno State, assuring the people of the state of stronger protection through new technology.
In his remarks, the Chairman of the Nigerian Governors Forum and Governor of Kwara State, Mr AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, lauded the President for his intervention in the states with the visionary Renewed Hope Agenda.
Speaking on state police, the Governor said discussions were ongoing with various security agencies led by the National Security Adviser (NSA), Mr Nuhu Ribadu, and the NGF has made its contributions, noting that the document will be taken to the National Assembly for “a legislative framework for the state police.”
Governors at the meeting were Hope Uzodinma of Imo State, Alex Otti of Abia State, Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom State, Douye Diri of Bayelsa State, Hyacinth Alia of Benue State, Bassey Otu of Cross River State, Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta State, Francis Nwifuru of Ebonyi State, Monday Okpebholo of Edo State, Peter Mbah of Enugu State, Mohammed Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe State, and Umar Namadi of Jigawa State.
Others were Abba Kabir Yusuf of Kano State, Dikko Umaru Radda of Katsina State, Ahmed Usman Ododo of Kogi State; Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State, Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State, Caleb Mufwang of Plateau State, Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State, Agbu Keffas of Taraba State, Mai Mala Buni of Yobe State, and Lucky Aiyedatiwa of Ondo State, while the deputy Governor of Borno State, Umar Usman Kadafur, was also present.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Oil prices slightly rose on Wednesday as attacks on ships in the Middle East continued and talks to end the Iran war hit an impasse.
Brent futures gained 7 cents to trade at $88.98 a barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude increased by 7 cents to $83.27 per barrel.
The US and Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis reported separate attacks on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait on Tuesday, two crucial export routes for Middle Eastern oil and gas in addition to the Suez Canal.
Reuters reported that there continued to be no discussions between Iran and the US to extend their ceasefire because, from Iran’s perspective, the deal had no start date and so there was nothing to extend.
Shipping data showed the number of vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz fell to a one-week low of eight on Tuesday. Before the war, 125 to 140 vessels passed through the crucial waterway each day.
The US military, meanwhile, said an American Navy MH-60 helicopter fired two Hellfire missiles to disable the steering gear of a Panama-flagged cargo ship.
The ship ignored repeated warnings to stop violating a naval blockade on Iranian ports, the US Central Command said.
Forecasters including the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and the International Energy Administration (IEA) revised down their oil demand outlooks as US-Iran talks stall.
OPEC lowered its world oil demand growth forecast for 2026 to 580,000 barrels per day, it said in its monthly oil market report.
The International Energy Agency cut its 2026 demand projections and now expects a 1.6 million barrels per day contraction this year. However, the Paris-based agency is also predicting a 4.3 million barrels per day drop in supply this year, and an overall 2026 deficit of around 1.27 million barrels per day.
According to the IEA, Middle East oil flows briefly returned to pre-war levels in early July, with loadings reaching 20 million bpd, before falling to 12 million bpd later in the month. Middle East production remained 8.3 million barrels per day below pre-war levels in July.
The IEA cited the Hormuz shutdown, the US blockade of Iranian exports, attacks in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and reduced Kazakh CPC Blend exports among the forces keeping global supply below 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.”
