Economy
Oil Prices Ease 2% as Shippers Ignore Red Sea Tensions
By Adedapo Adesanya
Oil prices dropped nearly 2 per cent on Wednesday as the market resumed fully with investors monitoring developments in the Red Sea, where shippers are returning despite further attacks on Tuesday.
Brent crude futures lost $1.42 or 1.8 per cent to trade at $79.65 a barrel and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell by $1.46 or 1.9 per cent to quote at $74.11 per barrel.
Danish shipping company, Maersk, said it has scheduled several dozen container vessels to travel via the Suez Canal and the Red Sea in the coming weeks after calling a temporary halt to those routes this month due to attacks by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militia.
This move eases worries about a supply disruption that started last month when Houthi rebels in Yemen launched attacks on commercial shipping vessels in transit via the lower Red Sea after Israel began its war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Ships traveling through the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait have faced persistent attacks by the militants, greatly increasing the risk for ships passing through the Suez Canal.
The Red Sea is the most significant waterway connecting Europe to Asia and East Africa and also one of the world’s most densely packed shipping channels where about 12 per cent of global trade, including 30 per cent of global container traffic, passes through.
As a result, dozens of companies have stopped shipping in the Red Sea and at the Suez Canal. Some of the largest container-shipping companies, including Maersk, Hapag-Lloyd, CMA, CGM, and MSC, have paused or suspended their services in the Red Sea.
So far, the shipping disruptions have not significantly affected oil and gas prices.
Israeli forces pummelled central Gaza by land, sea, and air on Wednesday, a day after Israel’s Chief of Staff, Mr Herzi Halevi, told reporters that the war would go on “for many months,” according to Reuters.
Meanwhile, oil loadings at the Russian Black Sea port of Novorossiisk were suspended because of a storm. However, Kazakhstan’s energy ministry said the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) terminal near the port was open.
On the supply front, analysts warned that oil output in Russia, the third largest producer in the world after the US and Saudi Arabia, is expected to be steady or even to increase next year as the country has largely overcome Western sanctions following its war on Ukraine in 2022.
Inventory reports from the American Petroleum Institute (API) and the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) are expected on Wednesday and Thursday respectively, a day later than normal because of the Christmas holiday.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The pre-registration training and examination for capital market operators (CMOs) for the second quarter of 2026 has been postponed.
Business Post gathered that the new date for the exercise is now Monday, June 15, 2026.
This information was disclosed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) through a circular on Monday, June 8, 2026.
The Nigerian capital market regulator stated that this postponement has also resulted in the extension of the deadline for registration to Friday, June 12, 2026.
In the notice today, the SEC expressed its regret for the inconvenience this action may cause operators, who had prepared for the initial date of the training and examination.
“Further to the recent circular on Q2 2026 Pre-registration Training and Examination, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) hereby informs all eligible applicants for the Q2 2026 Pre-registration Training and Examination that the commencement date has been postponed to Monday, June 15, 2026.
“Registration on the designated portal has also been extended to Friday, June 12, 2026. All other conditions contained in the circular remain unchanged.
“The commission regrets any inconvenience this postponement may cause and appreciates the understanding of all applicants,” the disclosure noted.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
One of the leading healthcare firms in Nigeria, Fidson Healthcare Plc, has listed additional shares on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited.
The new stocks absorbed into the stock market were 600 million units, raising the total issued and fully paid-up shares of Fidson to 3,000,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each from 2,400,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.
The fresh equities came from the company’s rights issue of 600,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N35.00 per share.
They were issued to existing investors on the basis of one new ordinary share for every existing four ordinary shares held as of the close of business on Wednesday, November 12, 2025.
Confirming the development, the regulator in a notice said, “Trading licence holders are hereby notified that an additional 600,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each of Fidson Healthcare Plc were on Tuesday, June 2, 2026, listed on the daily official list of Nigerian Exchange Limited.
“The additional shares arose from the company’s rights issue of 600,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N35.00 per share on the basis of one new ordinary share for every existing four ordinary shares held as at the close of business on Wednesday, November 12, 2025.
“With the listing of the additional 600,000,000 ordinary shares, the total issued and fully paid-up shares of Fidson Healthcare Plc have now increased from 2,400,000,000 to 3,000,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.”
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
This news will surely excite local contractors with verified claims of N100 million or less, as the federal government has approved their payments.
This approval for the disbursement was given by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Taiwo Oyedele.
This followed a verification and reconciliation exercise designed to ensure only validated claims qualify for payment.
The beneficiaries cover contractors across multiple ministries, departments and agencies. The release of the funds is expected to enable contractors to return to project sites, pay workers, settle suppliers and meet outstanding financial commitments.
In an announcement on Monday, the Federal Ministry of Finance also said this latest batch of payments would ease liquidity pressure on small businesses and accelerate economic activity nationwide.
It was noted that the payments for verified claims of N100 million below were strategically done to spread economic impact broadly rather than concentrate disbursements among a handful of large firms.
The payments form part of a broader push to clear inherited contractor obligations, with over N700 billion verified in recent months.
“For many beneficiaries, the release of funds represents more than a financial transaction. It provides the certainty needed to sustain operations, preserve jobs, complete ongoing projects, and contribute to economic recovery and growth,” the ministry said in a statement.
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