Economy
Supply Worries Shoot Brent to $108 per Barrel
By Adedapo Adesanya
The return of supply worries to the oil market caused the price of the Brent crude to rise by 4.02 per cent or $4.21 on Wednesday to $108.86 per cent, while the United States West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures appreciated by 3.69 per cent or $3.67 to $104.29 per barrel.
The cause of the concerns was the disappointing outcome of the peace talks between Russia and Ukraine negotiators.
Russian President, Mr Vladimir Putin said Ukraine derailed peace talks, vowing to continue with the “special military operation.”
In a rare public appearance, he said peace talks had reached a dead end and insisted the invasion – which is in its sixth week – was going as planned.
To analysts, this signified that supply disruptions will return to the market even as the US is releasing 180 million barrels from its reserves over six months, part of a release of 240 million barrels from members of the International Energy Agency (IEA).
Meanwhile, the world’s largest oil trader, Vitol, has made known plans to wind down its activities involving Russian crude oil by the end of the year.
According to a spokesperson, trade with Russian oil “will diminish significantly in the second quarter as current term contractual obligations decline,” adding that, “we anticipate this will be completed by end of 2022”.
Reports noted the announcement was made following an urge from the Ukrainian government addressed to the four major commodity traders to stop dealing in Russian oil, the revenues from which, the Ukrainian government says, are used to finance the war in Ukraine.
The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has said it would be impossible to replace expected supply losses from Russia and it would not pump more crude.
OPEC on Tuesday cut its forecast for 2022 global oil demand growth, citing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, inflation and resurgence of the pandemic in China. OPEC expects global demand to grow by 3.67 million barrels per day in 2022, down 480,000 million barrels per day from its previous forecast.
On its part, the IEA also on Tuesday lowered its expectations for worldwide demand and said it anticipated rising global production could offset Russian oil output losses.
The IEA said it expects Russian output to drop 1.5 million barrels per day in April, growing to close to 3 million barrels per day from May.
Prices were pressured after the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported that crude oil inventories had added 9.4 million barrels in the week to April 8.
At 421.8 million barrels, oil inventories are about 13 per cent below the five-year average for this time of the year.
Last week’s build compared with an inventory build of 2.4 million barrels for the previous week. It also compares with an estimated inventory increase of as much as 7.757 million barrels for last week, as reported by the American Petroleum Institute (API).
By Adedapo Adesanya
The federal government is offering two new savings bonds with interest rates between 17 and 18 per cent through the Debt Management Office (DMO).
In a statement by the agency, the country said retail investors can purchase the two-year bond maturing in January 2027 at 17.23 per cent interest, while the three-year paper maturing in January 2028 at a coupon rate of 18.23 per cent.
Bonds are very safe financial instrument that serve as investments because they are backed by the federal government, which promises to pay back the money.
According to the DMO, people can buy these bonds starting January 13, 2025, until January 17, 2025, with allotment expected on January 22, 2025, and the interest to be paid to investors every three months – in April, July, October, and January.
These bonds have some special features. They are tax-free under both company and personal tax laws.
Big investors like pension funds and trustees are allowed to buy them and each bond costs N1,000 each.
However, interested investor can only buy at least N5,000 worth, and can’t buy more than N50 million.
This comes after the Ms Patience Oniha-led debt office said the Nigerian government was offering three bonds worth N150 billion in September 2024.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The House of Representatives has said it would make efforts to pass the controversial tax reform bills forwarded to the National Assembly by President Bola Tinubu last year.
Mr Tinubu, in a bid to improve revenue of the government, asked the parliament to pass the bills, but this has been resisted mostly by northern lawmakers and others.
At the resumption of plenary session on Tuesday in Abuja, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr Abbas Tajudeen, assured that the green chamber of the legislative arm of government would prioritise the tax reform bills.
“The legislative agenda of the House for 2025 prioritises the passage of the Appropriation Bill and the Tax Reform Bills, both of which are pivotal to economic recovery and fiscal stability.
“These reforms are essential for broadening the tax base, improving compliance and reducing dependency on external borrowing.
“The House will ensure that these reforms are equitable and considerate of the needs of all Nigerians, particularly the most vulnerable,” Mr Abbas said through the Deputy Speaker, Mr Ben Kalu, who presided over the session.
He also expressed grief over the loss of lives in stampedes in Ibadan, Abuja and Anambra State last month due to hardship in the country.
Several Nigerians died in the stampedes while trying to receive palliatives given to alleviate their sufferings.
“Tragic events, such as the stampedes in Ibadan, Abuja and Okija, during the distribution of palliative aid, underline the urgent need for improved planning and safety protocols in humanitarian efforts. On behalf of the House, I extend our deepest sympathies to the families and communities affected.
“These incidents serve as a stark reminder of the socio-economic hardships facing our citizens and the imperative for policies that tackle hunger and poverty at their roots.
“Turning to the economy, 2024 presented both difficulties and opportunities. While inflation remains a pressing concern, progress in GDP growth and the positive trajectory of economic reforms provide hope for a more stable and prosperous 2025,” the Speaker said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange recorded a 0.69 per cent appreciation on Monday, January 13, as investors showed renewed interests in unlisted securities.
During the trading session, the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) increased by 21.07 points to wrap the session at 3,095.00 points compared with the 3,073.93 points recorded in the previous session.
In the same vein, the value of the local alternative stock exchange went up by N7.22 billion to close at N1.061 trillion compared with last Friday’s N1.051 trillion.
Yesterday, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc recorded a growth of N3.78 to close at N42.00 per share versus N38.22 per share, Mixta Real Estate Plc improved by 20 Kobo to end at N2.35 per unit versus the preceding closing rate of N2.15 per unit, and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc gained 1 Kobo to finish at 25 Kobo per share compared with the previous session’s 24 Kobo per share.
Conversely, Geo-Fluids Plc lost 29 Kobo to quote at N4.56 per unit compared with the preceding day’s N4.85 per unit, and Afriland Properties Plc slid by 75 kobo to end the session at N15.50 per share versus the preceding closing rate of N16.25 per share.
During the session, the volume of securities traded decreased by 27.2 per cent to 3.1 million units from 4.3 million units, the value of securities slumped by 81.5 per cent to N3.2 million from N17.2 million, and the number of deals expanded by 57.9 per cent to 30 deals from 19 deals.
At the close of trades, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc remained the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 1.9 million units worth N74.2 million, followed by 11 Plc with 12,963 units valued at N3.2 million, and IGI Plc with 10.7 million units sold for N2.1 million.
Also, IGI Plc remained the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 10.6 million units sold for N2.1 million, trailed by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc with 1.9 million units valued at N74.2 million, and Acorn Petroleum Plc with 1.2 million units worth N1.9 million.
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