Author: Ogochukwu Ndubuisi

Naira Falls at Informal FX Segment over Dollar Shortage The naira weakened against the US dollar, trading at N1,420 per dollar in the informal foreign exchange market as of Thursday. Over the past 24 hours, the local currency has lost N5, underscoring a significant dollar shortage and escalating demand for foreign payments. Leading Bureau de Change operators are quoting the exchange rate at N1,420, with some even demanding up to N1,425 in Lagos and Abuja. This clear upward trend is driven by constrained dollar supply. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has deliberately scaled back its foreign exchange interventions since…

Guterres Calls for Immediate Release of Detained 118 UN Staff UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called for the immediate release of the 118 UN staff currently detained worldwide. Guterres, in a statement marking the International Day of Solidarity with Detained and Missing Staff Members, said attacks against the UN increased with 179 personnel arrested or detained in 2025 alone. The figure marks a significant increase from the 52 UN staff in detention in March 2025. In Yemen alone, 73 UN staff remain detained by the de facto Houthi authorities, including eight from the UN’s human rights office. The UN chief…

Oil Prices Surge after Iran Rejects U.S. Peace Proposal Oil prices surged in the global commodity market on Thursday as reciprocal attacks between the US, Israel, and Iran continue, despite reports that Washington wants to avoid a prolonged war. Iran “responded negatively” to the U.S. proposal, state media reported, citing an unnamed senior political-security official who spoke of a counterproposal that included a complete halt to “aggression and assassinations” and recognition of Iran’s sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz. International benchmark Brent crude futures traded at $99.65 per barrel, up around 2.4% from the previous close of $97.26. US benchmark…

NGX Delivers 29% Return YTD, Companies Double Down on Gains Nigerian Exchange (NGX) year-to-date (YTD) return topped 29% as market capitalisation approached N129 trillion, supported by activities of value hunters in the local bourse. Many companies with higher beta have delivered significant capital appreciation to shareholders in less than 3 months as the local bourse continues to boom. Top-performing stocks have gotten 100% re-rating since the beginning of the year as money continues to flow into the market. On Wednesday, Nigerian equities extended their bullish run with the NGX All-Share Index edging up 0.11% to close at 200,925.75 points. The…

Iran Rejects Trump’s 15-Point Peace Proposal, Makes Demands Iranian leaders have rejected a ceasefire proposal from the US President Donald Trump administration. The United States had sent Iran a 15-point proposal aimed at ending the conflict in the Middle East, a plan that was delivered through Pakistan. However, the Iranian authorities dismissed the proposal, counterposing demands that include recognition of its sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz, war reparations, and guarantees against renewed hostilities. The move comes amid a broader maritime standoff that has choked off a fifth of global oil and gas shipments, as Tehran has tightened transit rules…

NUPRC, SeaSeis Seal Landmark PEL5 Agreement The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has signed a Petroleum Exploration Licence (PEL) No 5 agreement with SeaSeisGeophysical Limited (SeaSeis), to boost Nigeria’s offshore exploration. The agreement authorises the company, in partnership with the commission and TGS, to undertake the acquisition and processing of new 3D seismic and gravity data. The official execution of the agreement between SeaSeisGeophysical Limited and its partner, TGS, was held at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja. The three-year agreement empowers the partnership to issue data-use licences, with revenues to be shared between the company and the commission. The…

AfCFTA Names Nigeria Pilot Country for Simplified Trade Regime Implementation The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat has selected Nigeria as the pilot country for the implementation of the Simplified Trade Regime (STR) in West Africa to support small-scale cross-border trade. A delegation from AfCFTA secretariat led by Pedro Estevao, made this known during an engagement with the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to advance the implementation of the STR at its headquarters recently in Abuja. The NCS`s Spokesperson, Abdullahi Maiwada, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday in Abuja. According to Maiwada, Estevao notes that, as the largest market…

Justice Minister Faults Atiku’s Comment on Resolved OPL 245 Dispute The Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, on Wednesday faulted the claim by former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, that the disputes associated with the OPL 245 oil block have not been resolved. This is contained in a statement by Fagbemi on Wednesday in Abuja. The Minister of Justice was responding to media reports attributed to the Abubakar Media Office, which he said contained misrepresentations concerning the recent resolution of disputes associated with the OPL 245 oil block. “Atiku downplayed the landmark achievement of the current administration in brokering…

Nigeria Cuts Time Taken to Approve Oil Wells Application Nigeria’s oil regulator has cut the time taken (TT) to approve applications to revive idle oil wells from weeks to hours, as Africa’s top crude producer seeks to capitalise on high energy prices. The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission is approving permits within hours of applications, according to a Bloomberg report citing people familiar with the process. With oil trading near $100 a barrel, Africa’s top producers are moving to capitalise on demand as buyers turn to suppliers such as Nigeria and Angola, away from the Middle East conflict. The West…

MTN, GTCO Drive NGX Rally, Market Cap Surges Near N129trn The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) market capitalisation expanded to about N129 trillion on Wednesday, with large-cap stocks: MTN Nigeria, GTCO, gaining momentum. The market closed trading activities for today on a positive note, as key market performance indicators both appreciated by 0.11%. Stockbrokers said the uptick indicated continued buying interest in selective medium- and large-cap stocks, including MTNN (2.41%) and GTCO (3.2%), across major market sectors. Specifically, the market index added 219.87 basis points to close at 200,925.75.  Likewise, market capitalisation increased by ₦141.14 billion, or 0.11%, to ₦128.98 trillion. Total…