Economy
Nigerian Shares Lose 0.02% to Mild Profit-Taking
By Dipo Olowookere
The first trading session in July on the floor of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) was sloppy and the bears were not merciful as they punished the market by 0.02 per cent.
Business Post reports that the market succumbed to mild profit-taking in GT HoldCo, UBA, Cadbury Nigeria, Oando, United Capital and others.
As a result, the All-Share Index (ASI) reduced by 8.69 points to 37,898.59 points from 37,907.28 points, while the market capitalisation went down by N4 billion to N19.756 trillion from N19.760 trillion.
From the sectoral performance, it was observed that the energy counter was responsible for the decline witnessed by Nigerian shares yesterday as it depreciated by 1.30 per cent. This loss outweighed the gains in the other sectors.
The banking and insurance sectors appreciated by 0.43 per cent each, the consumer goods space grew by 0.02 per cent, while the industrial goods sector closed flat.
A total of 20 equities closed on the gainers’ chart yesterday, while 15 equities finished on the losers’ log, indicating a positive market breadth. But the risers could not save the market from drowning.
The biggest loss was recorded by Royal Exchange, which went down by 9.84 per cent to 55 kobo and was trailed by Oando, which lost 8.51 per cent to finish at N3.01.
Mutual Benefits Assurance depreciated by 6.98 per cent to sell for 40 kobo, Regency Alliance went down by 6.52 per cent to 43 kobo, while Cornerstone Insurance declined by 3.57 per cent to 54 kobo.
On the flip side, Tripple Gee finished as the best-performing stock after its equity price went up by 10.00 per cent to settle at 77 kobo.
Ikeja Hotel grew by 9.77 per cent to trade at N1.46, CWG appreciated by 9.57 per cent to N1.26, Wema Bank gained 9.52 per cent to trade at 69 kobo, while Learn Africa rose by 9.52 per cent to N1.15.
On Thursday, investors traded 205.5 million shares worth N2.7 billion in 3,563 deals versus the 213.7 million shares worth N3.2 billion traded in 3,522 deals on Wednesday, indicating a 3.86 per cent decline in the number of traded shares, a 15.45 per cent decline in the value of traded shares and a 1.16 increase in the number of deals.
GT HoldCo was the most active stock at the market yesterday as it sold 41.8 million units valued at N1.3 billion and was followed by Mutual Benefits, which sold 14.7 million units valued at N5.9 million.
Wema Bank transacted 13.2 million shares worth N8.3 million, Courtville exchanged 12.1 million stocks for N2.6 million, while Zenith Bank traded 9.8 million equities valued at N233.8 million.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Thirty-one companies on Tuesday emerged as winners of the 2025 licensing round of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).
The energy firms competed to take control of 50 oil and gas blocks put on offer by the Nigerian government.
They were among the 143 companies that submitted 200 bids for the oil facilities drawn from diverse terrains, including the Niger Delta Onshore, Niger Delta Shallow Water, Niger Delta Deep Offshore, Benin Basin Onshore, Anambra Basin Onshore, Chad Basin Onshore and Benue Trough.
Business Post gathered that investors, however, were only interested in 37 out of the 50 oil blocks put up for sale by the NUPRC. This is the first time in Nigeria’s energy history that frontier basins would attract such a level of investor interest.
The organisations that won the bids include SSonic Petroleum Limited (PPL 2A29), CFP Pipeline and Flowlines (2A30), Dutchford E&P Limited (2A32), Attabanson Global Company Limited (2A33 and PPL 901), Rosem Energy Limited (2A38), Pivot-GIS Limited (2A39), Network E&P (2A40), Asharami (2A41), LexOil (2A42), BVOF (2A43), GupscoEnergy Limited (2A44 and 2A51), Saratoga (2A45), Volante (2A46), Concept-Reel Petroleum Services Limited (2A47 and 2A55), Clinton Oil Field (2A48 and 2A62) and Nuway Oaklane Limited (2A49).
Others are Ramec (2A50), Italia (2A53), Blueridge E&P (2A54), Up Energies Limited (2A56), AYM Shafa (2A57), Blackrock Holdings Limited (2A58), Funtay Integrated Business Limited (2A59), Riparian Development and Production Limited (2A60), Nikstallis (2A61 and PPL 900), Stardeep Petroleum (PPL 2010), Dakoda & U Limited (PPL308 and PPL 800), Southborne Oil and Gas Limited (PPL 902), Lanaka Petroleum (PPL 903) HighbanResources Limited (PPL 700), Eyre Energy Limited (PPL 801).
By Adedapo Adesanya
Oil prices rose roughly 2 per cent on Tuesday as investors reacted to mounting concerns that escalating hostilities between the United States and Iran and threats by Yemen’s Houthis to blockade Saudi Arabia could disrupt global energy supplies.
Brent futures rose $1.79 or 2.0 per cent to $91.01 a barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude gained $1.68 or 2.0 per cent to settle at $84.91 per barrel.
US forces bombed targets in the south and west of Iran while Iran targeted American sites in Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan and at least one tanker was hit in the Strait of Hormuz.
Supply concerns resurfaced with the Strait essentially closed again and tanker traffic at multi-month lows, to the level from before the ceasefire between the US and Iran, which appears to be over at the moment.
Prices could go much higher if the renewed conflict drags on for a few more months, as the world has now drained a lot of the buffers that had kept oil surges in check between March and May.
Drained strategic and commercial inventories in many key oil-consuming economies, including the US, are setting the stage for further oil price rallies during the busiest oil demand season.
The just-declared Houthi blockade on Saudi maritime shipping has already begun to witness ill-effects, as reports emerge of two oil tankers having made U-turns while initially en route toward the Suez Canal. It was reported that their crews received threats from Houthi militants in Yemen.
The two oil tankers, which loaded Saudi crude for China and India, made U-turns in the Red Sea and headed toward the Suez following the warning from the militia.
Meanwhile, Kuwait’s power and desalination plants caught fire for a second straight day as US and Iran traded strikes for a tenth day.
As Russia’s war with Ukraine expands beyond Ukraine’s borders, the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) has stopped receiving oil from Kazakhstan after suspending loadings on Monday due to attacks on oil tankers at its Black Sea terminal.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Senate has passed a bill to repeal and re-enact the law establishing the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), paving the way for the regulatory agency to be renamed the Insurance Regulatory Commission (IRC).
The legislation, titled the Insurance Regulatory Commission (Establishment) Bill, 2026, was passed after the Senate considered and adopted the report of its committee on banking, insurance and other financial institutions.
The Chairman of the committee, Mr Adetokunbo Abiru, the senator representing Lagos East, who presented the report, stated that the proposed legislation was necessary because the existing National Insurance Commission Act of 1997 had become outdated and no longer reflected the realities of Nigeria’s evolving insurance industry or global regulatory standards.
According to the Senate, the decision to change the Commission’s name was informed by the need to eliminate confusion associated with the existing designation and to better reflect the institution’s regulatory mandate within Nigeria’s insurance industry.
The bill also provides legal protection for the commission and its officers against adverse claims arising from the lawful execution of their statutory duties.
However, he noted that the commission’s enabling law had become obsolete, exposing significant regulatory gaps that required urgent legislative intervention.
‘The current National Insurance Commission Act 1997 is outdated and does not adequately address the emerging economic growth, needs and development of the insurance business,” the lawmaker said.
He explained that the new legislation seeks to strengthen the independence of the commission by empowering it to make regulatory decisions without undue influence in the country’s insurance sector.
According to him, the bill also enhances the commission’s authority to exchange information and collaborate with domestic and international regulatory bodies, issue regulations, guidelines, standards and directives on insurance-related matters, and intervene more effectively in financially distressed insurance companies to protect policyholders and preserve financial stability.
This marks yet another move to strengthen the country’s insurance sector following the enactment of the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA) of 2025 and the industry-wide recapitalisation exercise, which will wrap up by July 31.
