Economy
Stock Market Rebounds 0.49% as Airtel, FBNH Enjoy Investors’ Patronage
By Dipo Olowookere
The direction of the nation’s stock market was changed from south to north on Tuesday following a renewed interest in shares in the banking and telecommunications sectors of the market.
Business Post reports that shares of Airtel Africa, FBN Holdings, UBA, Sterling Bank, Cutix and others enjoyed investors’ patronage and this returned the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited into the bulls’ territory by 0.49 per cent at the close of transactions.
Consequently, the All-Share Index (ASI) increased by 213.86 points to 43,444.20 points from the previous day’s 43,230.34 points, while the market capitalisation expanded by N112 billion to N22.672 trillion from N22.560 trillion.
It was observed that the insurance, banking and industrial goods sectors appreciated yesterday by 0.39 per cent, 0.11 per cent and 0.01 per cent respectively, while the energy and consumer goods counters depreciated by 2.49 per cent and 0.38 per cent respectively.
Cutix recorded the highest price increase during the session, moving higher by 8.33 per cent to trade at N3.25 and was followed by Cornerstone Insurance, which grew by 7.69 per cent to sell for 56 kobo.
Consolidated Hallmark Insurance rose by 6.90 per cent to 62 kobo, Royal Exchange chalked up 6.00 per cent to settle at 53 kobo, while Regency Assurance improved by 5.26 per cent to 40 kobo.
On the flip side, Total Energies closed the trading session as the heaviest price loser as its shares were depressed by 9.97 per cent to quote at N216.80.
Mutual Benefits Assurance depreciated by 6.90 per cent to 27 kobo, Linkage Assurance fell by 5.36 per cent to 53 kobo, Axa Mansard declined by 4.35 per cent to N2.20, while Chams also lost 4.35 per cent to sell for 22 kobo.
The market was quite busy on Tuesday with investors cherry-picking stocks of special interest to them and this resulted in the higher trading volume and value witnessed at the close of business.
A total of 423.8 million equities worth N11.7 billion exchanged hands in 4,181 deals yesterday compared with the 293.4 million equities worth N4.3 billion traded in 4,239 deals a day earlier, indicating an increase in the trading volume and value by 44.44 per cent and 171.60 per cent respectively and a decline of 1.37 per cent in the number of trades.
FBN Holdings was the most active equity as it traded 223.6 million units worth N2.8 billion and was trailed by Sterling Bank, which traded 32.5 million units worth N48.7 million.
Transcorp transacted 24.7 million units valued at N24.5 million, GTCO exchanged 20.8 million units valued at N564.2 million, while Jaiz Bank sold 15.9 million units for N10.3 million.
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.
