Economy
Iran, Russia Supply Risks, Venezuela Deal Buoys Oil Prices
By Adedapo Adesanya
Oil prices rose by about 2 per cent on Friday on growing supply worries linked to intensifying protests in oil-producing Iran and an escalation of attacks in Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Brent futures appreciated by $1.35 or 2.18 per cent to $63.34 per barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures were up by $1.36 or 2.35 per cent to $59.12. For the week, Brent grew by about 4 per cent, while WTI gained about 3 per cent.
Worries over potential disruption of Iran’s oil output grew as the civil unrest in the Middle Eastern country, which is a member of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), intensified.
President Donald Trump said on Thursday that Iran’s leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was planning on fleeing the country following the protests in the OPEC producer demanding a change in regime.
The Ayatollah is “looking to go someplace”, President Trump told reporters who asked for comment on reports that the Iranian leader could escape to Russia.
On Friday, Iran cut off Internet, as the regime frequently does amid protests in the autocratic country over economic hardships.
The action continued in the capital Tehran as well as in major cities of Mashhad and Isfahan and other areas around the country.
The protests that began nearly two weeks ago have left about 40 people dead and 2,000 have been detained as Iranian forces are trying to suppress the widespread protests.
The Ayatollah on Friday slammed the protests and protesters, accusing them of being “vandals” acting on behalf of President Trump.
In a televised address and amid the Internet blackout, Khamenei vowed that the Islamic Republic would “not back down” to protesters and President Trump.
A survey showed that OPEC pumped 28.40 million barrels per day last month, down 100,000 barrels per day from November’s revised total, with troubled Iran and Venezuela posting the largest declines.
The Russia-Ukraine war also added to supply worries as the Russian military said on Friday it had fired its hypersonic Oreshnik missile at targets in Ukraine. The targets included energy infrastructure supporting Ukraine’s military-industrial complex.
Despite these, global oil inventories are rising and oversupply remains the main driver that could cap gains.
The US moved to push a Venezuela oil deal to US energy companies including Chevron, ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips, Halliburton, Valero, Marathon, Shell, Vitol, Trafigura, Repsol, Eni, and others, with President Trump saying the agreement would generate “tremendous wealth” for the industry and “great wealth” for the American people.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) is seeking a reduction in import duty exemptions, which rose to N34 trillion, limiting its ability to increase its revenue generation threshold.
The Comptroller-General of the Customs Service, Mr Adewale Adeniyi, disclosed that the value of import duty exemption certificate approvals increased to that level in 2025, describing the policy as one of the major factors restricting its revenue generation.
At an investigative session of the Senate Committee on Finance with revenue-generating agencies in Abuja on Monday, Mr Adeniyi explained that government fiscal policies have continued to impact the revenue-generating capacity of the Customs Service, both positively and negatively.
“The NCS would have generated significantly higher revenue over the years if not for government-approved import duty waivers and other external factors affecting collections,” he said.
He added that the Import Duty Exemption Certificate scheme, introduced in March 2020, accounted for about N34 trillion in approvals in 2025, with nearly 60 per cent covering duty-free importation of military hardware due to Nigeria’s prevailing security challenges.
Other government-backed duty waivers, he noted, covered the importation of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), electric and hybrid vehicles, healthcare equipment and medical supplies, industrial machinery and manufacturing inputs, as well as food import intervention programmes.
While acknowledging the impact of the waivers on Customs revenue, Mr Adeniyi argued that fiscal policy should not be assessed solely on the basis of revenue generation but also on its broader economic and social objectives.
He, however, urged the federal government to establish stronger monitoring mechanisms to ensure beneficiaries of duty waivers deliver the intended economic outcomes, including lower consumer prices, increased local production and improved healthcare access.
The committee also expressed displeasure over the absence of several heads of government agencies invited to the hearing, including the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Industrial Training Fund (ITF), and the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Jabi.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Mr Sani Musa, warned that the affected chief executives must appear at the committee’s next sitting or face severe sanctions under the Senate’s rules.
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By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange rose by 0.40 per cent on Monday, July 13, buoyed by buying interest in 11 Plc, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc and UBN Property Plc, which offset the profit-taking in Food Concepts Plc, the parent company of Chicken Republic.
11 Plc gained N20.69 to end at N227.64 per share compared with last Friday’s price of N206.95 per share, CSCS Plc grew by N1.83 to N91.48 per unit from N89.65 per unit, and UBN Property Plc added 1 Kobo to sell at N1.81 per share versus N1.80 per share.
On the flip side, Food Concepts Plc depreciated by 24 Kobo to close at N2.45 per unit, in contrast to the preceding session’s N2.69 per unit.
As a result, the market capitalisation increased by N9.2 billion to N2.587 trillion from N2.578 trillion, and the NASD Security Index (NSI) improved by 15.33 points to 4,311.67 points from 4,296.34 points.
Yesterday, the volume of securities traded by investors surged by 615.9 per cent to 9.1 million units from the previous 1.3 million units, and the value of securities rose by 997.1 per cent to N320.4 million from the preceding session’s N29.2 million, while the number of deals decreased by 12.5 per cent to 28 deals from last Friday’s 32 deals.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units worth N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 73.9 million units exchanged for N5.2 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units traded for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units transacted for N415.7 million.
