Economy
Profit-Taking Persists at Customs Street as Index Sheds 0.15%
By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited further shed 0.15 per cent on Thursday as profit-taking persisted after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) further jacked up the interest rate by 1.50 per cent to 26.25 per cent on Tuesday.
Customs Street was in red during the trading session as investors offloaded some blue-chip stocks to book profit, leaving the bears to tighten their grip on the bourse.
At the close of business, the All-Share Index (ASI) went down by 151.14 points to 97,978.02 points from 98,129.16 points and the market capitalisation decreased by N85 billion to settle at N55.424 trillion compared with the previous day’s N55.509 trillion.
Business Post reports that investor sentiment remained bearish yesterday after the exchange finished with 17 price gainers and 28 price losers, implying a negative market breadth index.
SAHCO lost 9.80 per cent to trade at N20.70, NEM Insurance declined by 9.47 per cent to N7.65, FTN Cocoa slipped by 9.35 per cent to N1.26, Tantalizers slid by 9.26 per cent to 49 Kobo, and Japaul lost 8.42 per cent to close at N1.74.
On the flip side, C&I Leasing rose by 9.90 per cent to N3.44, Caverton improved by 7.69 per cent to N1.40, Chams grew by 7.14 per cent to N1.50, Consolidated Hallmark expanded by 6.15 per cent to N1.38, and Veritas Kapital increased by 5.36 per cent to 59 Kobo.
During the trading day, investors bought and sold 316.5 million shares worth N7.7 billion in 7,852 deals compared with the 271.7 million shares worth N5.4 billion in 7,383 deals, indicating an increase in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 16.49 per cent, 42.59 per cent, and 6.35 per cent, respectively.
The busiest stock for the session was UBA, which traded 50.3 million units valued at N984.8 million, GTCO transacted 38.5 million units worth N1.4 billion, Zenith Bank exchanged 28.9 million units valued at N878.8 million, Transcorp sold 21.7 million units for N226.0 million, and Julius Berger traded 17.7 million units worth N1.5 billion.
Yesterday, the industrial goods sector was flat, and the energy index appreciated by 0.72 per cent, while the insurance, banking and consumer goods counters depreciated by 1.90 per cent, 1.42 per cent, and 0.05 per cent, respectively.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
As part of the implementation of the T+1 settlement cycle in the Nigerian capital market, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has fixed 5:00 pm on the first business day after a transaction (T+1) as the settlement deadline for equities and commodities traded and settled through the Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS).
In a circular on Wednesday to capital market operators and other market participants, the capital market regulator noted that all transactions in the affected securities must be fully paid by 5:00 pm T+1 to ensure compliance with the standard Delivery versus Payment (DvP) settlement procedure.
It warned that where a broker/dealer’s trading account is not adequately funded to meet its settlement obligation within the prescribed period, the default would be managed in line with the CSCS Default Management Procedure and the applicable transaction settlement guidelines of the relevant exchange.
The commission also clarified that foreign portfolio investors are not required to prefund their accounts for trades in the Nigerian capital market.
However, it said capital market operators facilitating transactions on behalf of foreign portfolio investors must establish and maintain appropriate controls and processes to ensure timely funding and completion of settlements within the prescribed timeframe.
The clarification follows earlier SEC circulars on the implementation of the T+2 settlement cycle for equities transactions, issued on June 3, 2025, and the transition to the T+1 settlement cycle, issued on May 15, 2026.
The T+1 cycle means that eligible securities transactions are settled one business day after the trade date, reducing the period between execution and final settlement.
The SEC said the transition represents a significant milestone in its efforts to build a more efficient, resilient and internationally aligned trading and post-trade environment, adding that the shorter settlement cycle would improve settlement efficiency, reduce counterparty risk, enhance liquidity and strengthen the competitiveness of the Nigerian capital market.
According to the agency, the reforms would ultimately improve the attractiveness of the Nigerian market to both domestic and international investors.
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.
