Economy

Oil Rises Over 3% as OPEC+ May Extend Supply Shortage

Published

6 years ago

03/06/2020

By Adedapo Adesanya

Oil prices rose more than three percent on Tuesday, June 2 amid reports that the Organisation of the Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies led by Russia known as OPEC+ are eyeing an extension to current production cut levels to more than three months beyond July.

Major producers including Russia want to keep the supply shortage, which is expected to end this month, for one more month, but Saudi Arabia, OPEC’s de facto leader, is reportedly in favor of a one to three-month extension.

Yesterday, the Brent Crude was closing in on the $40 per barrel threshold as it rose by $1.32 or 3.44 percent to sell at $39.64 per barrel, while the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) Crude was up $1.46 or 4.12 percent to trade at $36.85 per barrel.

OPEC+ group may decide in the coming days to roll over for a month or two the current level of production cut pegged at 9.7 million barrels daily beyond June to support last month’s price rally.

Despite reaching just 74 percent compliance from OPEC in May, according to a Reuters survey, the market will be looking at the OPEC+ assembly to extend the 9.7 million barrels a day cut through July or August, longer than until the end of June as originally planned.

According to the original agreement reached in April, OPEC+ was to cut 9.7 million barrel in combined production for two months—May and June—and then ease these to 7.7 million bpd, to stay in effect until the end of the year. Then, from January 2021, the production cut would be further eased to 5.8 million bpd, to remain in effect until the end of April 2022.

On Monday, there were reports that the OPEC+ group could hold its June meeting as early as Thursday instead of June 9 and 10. Russia, OPEC’s key partner in the pact, reportedly doesn’t mind moving the meeting to this week—a sign that Moscow might agree to extending the current production cuts beyond the end of June expiry for the record cuts.

Russia is a key factor in all OPEC+ meetings and decisions and the President in Moscow, Mr Vladimir Putin, discussed with US President, Mr Donald Trump via phone over the OPEC+ production cut agreements and the future of the oil market on Monday.

The OPEC+ agreement, “reached with the active support of the presidents of Russia and the United States, would lead to a gradual restoration of oil demand and price stabilisation,” the Kremlin said in a statement.

Analysts also noted that most likely, OPEC+ could extend current cuts until September. 1, with a meeting set before then to decide on next steps.

The decision reached could help push crude prices which remain well below the levels they enjoyed before Saudi Arabia and Russia kicked off a price war on March 6.

While the two benchmarks have plenty of losses to retrace before a full rebound to pre-pandemic levels, both staged strong rallies through May as storage pressures eased and supply stabilized.

Also, adding to the gains was the reopening of businesses in countries around the world after lockdown mandates caused by the coronavirus pandemic also oil boosted prices.

More people are now demanding for fuel because the economy has opened, and this will help to increase demand for energy products

In the United States, the largest producer, falling crude inventories at the nation’s oil storage hub in Cushing, Oklahoma, has also supported prices.

Industry group American Petroleum Institute (API) will release its weekly oil inventory report first with official data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) following later on Wednesday.

Economy

NRS Launches Unified Tax ID System

Published

3 hours ago

19/05/2026

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) has unveiled a unified Taxpayer Identification (Tax ID) system for all taxable persons across the country as part of efforts to strengthen tax administration and improve transparency.

The agency announced the development in a public notice issued jointly with the Joint Revenue Board (JRB) on Monday.

According to the notice, the initiative is backed by Sections 6, 7, and 8 of the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025, which mandate every taxable person in Nigeria to obtain a Tax ID, in a wider move to expand the country’s tax base.

The NRS said the new framework is designed to create a centralised and harmonised taxpayer database that would enhance interactions between taxpayers and revenue authorities at both federal and sub-national levels.

“The Tax ID will serve as a single, unified identity for all taxpayers, enabling seamless interaction with tax authorities at both federal and sub-national levels. It is designed to consolidate taxpayer records, eliminate duplication, and ensure more efficient management of tax-related information,” the agency stated.

The revenue agency explained that the new system would simplify tax compliance procedures, including taxpayer registration, filing of returns, and payment processes.

According to the NRS, the framework is also expected to improve accountability and reduce leakages in tax collection by creating better visibility and tracking of taxpayer information nationwide.

“The initiative will simplify tax compliance processes, including registration, tax filing, and payment procedures. The system will improve transparency by enabling better visibility and tracking of taxpayer records while reducing leakages and improving accountability in tax collection. The framework will also harmonise taxpayer information across all levels of government,” the notice added.

The agency further disclosed that the new Tax ID system would replace the existing Tax Identification Number (TIN) Validation API currently used by Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), financial institutions, and other organisations for taxpayer verification.

Economy

OTC Securities Exchange Falls 1.31% as Key Stocks Decline

Published

6 hours ago

19/05/2026

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

Three bellwether stocks weakened the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 1.31 per cent on Monday, May 18.

This brought the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) by 54.71 points to 4,133.70 points from 4,188.41 points, and shrank the market capitalisation by N32.73 billion to N2.473 trillion from N2.506 trillion.

Yesterday, FrieslandCampina Wamco Plc contracted by N12.45 to sell at N146.55 per share compared with last Friday’s closing price of N159.00 per share, Central Securities and Clearing System (CSCS) Plc declined by N2.34 to N70.00 per unit from N72.34 per unit, and NASD Plc lost 50 Kobo to trade at N34.50 per share versus N35.00 per share.

The trio overpowered the N5.56 gained Newrest Asl Plc. This stock ended the trading session at N61.15 per unit, in contrast to the previous session’s N55.59 per unit.

During the trading day, the volume of securities traded by investors slid by 56.1 per cent to 514,142 units from 1.2 million units, and the value of securities dropped 29.8 per cent to close at N17.4 million versus N29.8 million, while the number of deals jumped 12.5 per cent to 27 deals from 24 deals.

Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 60.8 million units exchanged for N4.1 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.9 million units traded for N1.9 billion.

GNI Plc also ended the day as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, trailed by Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units valued at N415.7 million, and Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc with 400 million units transacted for N1.2 billion.

Economy

FX Pressure Pushes Naira Lower to N1,373/$1 at Official Market

Published

6 hours ago

19/05/2026

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

It was a horrible day for the Nigerian Naira in the different segments of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Monday, May 15, as its value further weakened against the United States Dollar.

In the black market window, the Naira lost N5 against the Dollar yesterday to sell for N1,390/$1 compared with the previous value of N1,385/$1, but at the GTBank forex counter, it remained unchanged at N1,383/$1.

In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), the Nigerian currency depreciated against the greenback by N2.66 or 0.19 per cent to sell for N1,373.70/$1 compared to last Friday’s rate of N1,371.04/$1.

Equally, it fell against the Pound Sterling in the same market segment by N9.05 to trade at N1,839.66/£1 versus N1,830.61/£1, and lost N5.42 on the Euro to close at N1,600.49/€1 versus N1,595.07/€1.

The performance of the local currency during the session indicates early worries despite all signals pointing to stability, amid improved Dollar sales by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), with steady, higher oil receipts to bolster the nation’s reserves.

Activity at the market showed that turnover rose 57.3 per cent to $76.29 million on Monday from $48.49 million posted on Friday.

Over the weekend, S&P raised Nigeria’s credit ratings for the first time since 2012 and highlighted improved FX market liquidity and $10 billion turnover recorded in April 2026 as one of the major gains of the CBN-led FX reforms.

The agency said the liberalisation of the exchange rate has bolstered access to foreign currency and enabled a market-driven exchange-rate environment while supporting investor and consumer confidence.

Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market was bullish on Monday as investors monitored developments in the Iran conflict and weighed the impact of surging oil prices on inflation and US interest-rate expectations.

Ethereum (ETH) gained 0.7 per cent to trade at $2,134.10, Cardano (ADA) rose by 0.6 per cent to $0.2515, Solana (SOL) expanded by 0.3 per cent to $85.11, Binance Coin (BNB) jumped 0.2 per cent to $643.29, TRON (TRX) increased by 0.03 per cent to $0.3565, and Bitcoin (BTC) advanced by 0.02 per cent to $76,912.12.

On the flip side, Dogecoin (DOGE) slid by 1.5 per cent to $0.1044, and Ripple (XRP) decreased by 0.5 per cent to $1.38, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 apiece.