Economy
Stock Market Loses N71bn as Investors Play Safe
By Dipo Olowookere
The sum of N71 billion was lost by the Nigerian stock market last week. There are only 12 trading days left before the commencement of the Christmas and New Year holidays and in preparation, investors have begun to take profit to play safe.
In the previous week, which ended on November 29, the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) appreciated by a marginal 0.04 percent, but last week, which closed on December 6, the market went down by 0.54 percent.
This brought the All-Share Index (ASI) down 146.63 points to 26,855.52 points from 27,002.15 points and the market capitalisation down by N71 billion to N12.962 trillion from N13.033 trillion.
Business Post reports that a total of 35 stocks depreciated in price during the week, higher than 32 equities in the previous week, while 19 shares appreciated in price, lower 31 equities in the previous week, with 111 stocks closing unchanged, higher than 102 equities recorded in the preceding week.
Cornerstone Insurance was the worst performing stock, losing 20.25 percent to close at 63 kobo per share. MedView Airline lost 10.00 percent to close at N1.62 per unit, Arbico fell by 9.81 percent to settle at N4.32 per share, Ikeja Hotel declined by 9.73 percent to finish at N1.02 per unit, while FCMB depreciated by 9.45 percent to end at N1.82 per share.
On the other hand, Royal Exchange was the best performing stock on the NSE last week, rising by 17.39 percent to finish at 27 kobo per share.
Unilever Nigeria gained 17.39 percent to close at N18.90 per share, Trans-National Express rose by 10.00 percent to end at 99 kobo per unit, Niger Insurance improved also by 10.00 percent to settle 22 kobo per unit, while Okomu Oil rose by 9.77 percent to end at N54.50 per share.
In the week, the NSE recorded a total turnover of 952.7 million shares worth N12.8 billion in 17,279 deals compared with 1.2 billion shares valued at N13.2 billion traded a week earlier in 18,142 deals.
The financial services industry led the activity chart by volume with 691.0 million shares valued at N6.8 billion traded in 10,718 deals, contributing 72.53 percent and 53.13 percent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.
It was followed by the conglomerates sector with 101.9 million shares worth N701.3 million in 974 deals and the consumer goods industry with 57.6 million shares worth N2.0 billion in 2,095 deals.
A further breakdown showed that FCMB, Access Bank and Zenith Bank accounted for 334.2 million shares worth N3.1 billion in 3,684 deals, contributing 35.08 percent and 24.39 percent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.
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.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The over 9 billion shares of Lasaco Assurance Plc issued to shareholders of the company via a rights issue have been listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited.
The equities were brought to Customs Street on Wednesday by the organisation, increasing its total issued and fully paid-up share capital.
Lasaco Assurance, which scaled the recapitalisation hurdle of the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) in July 2026, raised fresh capital from the capital market to shore up its capital base.
The underwriting firm got about N18.5 billion from the rights issue, which involved the issuance of 9,236,321,546 ordinary shares at a unit price of N2.00.
The exercise was on the basis of five new ordinary shares for every existing six ordinary shares held as of the close of business on Friday, February 20, 2026.
Confirming the listing of the additional stocks of Lasaco Assurance today, the Head of Issuer Regulation Department of NGX RegCo, Mr Godstime Iwenekhai, announced in a circular that, “Trading licence holders are hereby notified that an additional 9,236,321,546 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each of Lasaco Assurance Plc were today, Wednesday, August 12, 2026, listed on the daily official list of Nigerian Exchange Limited.
“The additional shares arose from the company’s rights issue of 9,236,321,546 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N2.00 per share on the basis of five new ordinary shares for every existing six ordinary shares held as of the close of business on Friday, February 20, 2026.
“With the listing of the additional 9,236,321,546 ordinary shares, the total issued and fully paid-up share capital of Lasaco Assurance Plc has now increased from 11,083,585,855 to 20,319,907,401 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) has said the successful recapitalisation of the insurance industry will strengthen the sector’s ability to support financial stability and economic growth.
NIA Chairman, Mrs Ebelechukwu Nwachukwu, said a well-capitalised insurance industry would be better positioned to meet its obligations promptly, underwrite complex and large-scale risks and serve as a dependable pillar of the Nigerian economy.
She made the remarks while commending the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) for its structured implementation of the new minimum capital requirements under the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA) 2025.
Mrs Nwachukwu said NAICOM’s clear guidelines, systematic verification process, defined timelines and rigorous supervision had provided operators with a credible framework for navigating the recapitalisation exercise.
She described the outcome as a major milestone for the industry and congratulated the 43 insurance and reinsurance companies that have successfully met the prescribed minimum capital requirements.
According to her, the exercise represents “a major win not just for regulators and operators, but for policyholders, investors and the wider Nigerian economy.”
Mrs Nwachukwu said the association would continue to work with NAICOM and other stakeholders to consolidate the gains of the exercise, with emphasis on sustainable industry growth, stronger market conduct and improved consumer confidence.
The official also expressed solidarity with the eight companies still undergoing final verification and regulatory review, urging them to remain confident as NAICOM completes the process within the 14-day review period.
The NIA chairman assured policyholders and the wider business community that the insurance industry would emerge from the recapitalisation exercise stronger, more resilient and better positioned to contribute to Nigeria’s economic development.
