CAPITALDIGEST DAILYNEWS, 07/09/2026

REFINERY OWNERS URGE FG TO CURB FUEL IMPORTS, BACK LOCAL REFINERIES

The Crude Oil Refinery Owners Association of Nigeria has urged the Federal Government to urgently strengthen the domestic refining industry and reduce the country’s dependence on imported petroleum products. The association made the call in a position paper titled, “Position Paper on the Urgent Need for Strategic Government Intervention to Strengthen Nigeria’s Domestic Refining Industry,” on Thursday while citing the recent intervention by United States President Donald Trump in the American refining sector as a lesson for Nigeria. The association argued that Nigeria had an even stronger case for government intervention because local refinery operators faced foreign-exchange pressures, high borrowing costs, limited access to long-tenor financing, crude supply challenges, inadequate infrastructure, and high logistics costs. “It is sound industrial policy. It is an energy-security policy. And ultimately, it is economic policy,” the association stated. CORAN expressed concern that Nigeria, despite being one of Africa’s largest crude oil producers, continued to experience difficulties in supplying crude to domestic refineries on commercially workable terms. The association said that during the first quarter of 2026, 61.9 million barrels were allocated to domestic refineries while producers offered 68.7 million barrels, but only 28.5 million barrels were actually delivered. According to CORAN, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission identified pricing gaps between producers and domestic refiners as one of the major reasons crude offered did not translate into completed transactions. The association, however, acknowledged improvements in the second quarter, saying NUPRC reported that 53.7 million barrels of crude oil and condensate were supplied to local refineries, representing a reported Domestic Crude Supply Obligation performance of 97.4 percent. “CORAN acknowledges and commends this improvement,” it stated. The association, however, stressed that crude allocation alone was insufficient, noting that refineries required crude delivered under commercially sustainable conditions. “A refinery does not consume an allocation on paper. It consumes crude delivered under commercially sustainable terms,” CORAN stated. It called for greater consideration of pricing, transportation, evacuation infrastructure, crude quality, financing, payment arrangements, and proximity to producing assets when determining crude supply arrangements. CORAN also called for a commercially sensible pricing template for crude supplied to domestic refineries. It acknowledged that international benchmarks such as Brent, WTI, and Platts were useful market references but argued that they should not be applied mechanically where refiners were also required to bear separate evacuation and logistics costs. The association proposed a Domestic Refinery Crude Pricing Framework that would consider internationally recognized crude benchmark values, quality differentials, the actual point of delivery, avoided international freight and insurance costs, domestic evacuation and logistics costs, and proximity between producing fields and refineries, as well as reasonable commercial margins for producers. “The objective is not subsidized crude. The objective is correctly priced crude,” CORAN stated. The refinery owners also expressed concern over the resurgence of petroleum-product imports, urging the government to ensure imports increasingly serve only as a mechanism for addressing supply gaps. CORAN cited NMDPRA data showing that domestic PMS supply fell from approximately 32.5 million litres per day in June 2026 to 25.8 million litres per day in July, while petrol imports rose from about 18.1 million litres to 19.7 million litres per day. The association said Nigeria needed adequate petroleum-product stocks and was not advocating policies that could create artificial shortages. However, it warned that a continuous import regime alongside growing domestic refining investment could weaken incentives for existing and prospective refineries. “A continuous import regime existing alongside substantial domestic refining investment exports Nigerian jobs and refining margins, places additional demand on foreign exchange, weakens investment incentives for existing and prospective refineries, exposes Nigeria to international freight disruptions and geopolitical shocks, and ultimately undermines the country’s aspiration to become a petroleum-product refining and export hub,” it stated. CORAN called for import licenses to increasingly be calibrated against independently verified domestic production and supply gaps. It added that domestic production capable of meeting equivalent specifications and commercial requirements should receive priority in the Nigerian market. The association identified access to finance as one of the biggest constraints facing Nigeria’s emerging refining industry. It said refineries were capital-intensive projects requiring substantial investment in processing units, storage facilities, utilities, pipelines, loading facilities, environmental infrastructure, laboratories, fire-protection systems, and working capital. CORAN further urged the government to treat refineries as industrial infrastructure rather than merely downstream petroleum businesses. “Every barrel refined within Nigeria has the potential to retain economic value that would otherwise leave the country,” it stated. According to the association, domestic refining supports employment, engineering services, fabrication, transportation, petrochemicals, lubricants, plastics, construction materials, and other industries while conserving foreign exchange. It called for a network of large, medium-sized, and modular refineries strategically distributed around producing basins and major consumption centers. “The success of one refinery should not mark the completion of Nigeria’s refining ambition. Nigeria requires an ecosystem,” CORAN stated. To address the challenges, CORAN called on the Federal Government to convene an urgent Presidential Refining Industry Roundtable involving the association, NUPRC, NMDPRA, NNPC Limited, crude producers, financial institutions, infrastructure investors, and relevant government ministries. The association proposed 10 priority actions, including the full institutionalization of naira-for-crude, development of a domestic crude pricing template, stronger enforcement of the Domestic Crude Supply Obligation under Section 109 of the Petroleum Industry Act, and increased use of crude swaps. It also called for the progressive reduction of petroleum-product imports, the creation of a refinery development financing framework, the development of shared petroleum-product infrastructure, and the establishment of strategic petroleum-product reserves. CORAN further proposed regulatory and fiscal incentives for refinery expansion, particularly investments in conversion units capable of increasing domestic production of PMS, AGO, aviation fuel, and LPG. “Government intervention should therefore increasingly move away from subsidising consumption and toward enabling production,” it stated. The association added, “Support the refinery. Support the pipeline. Support the storage terminal. Support access to commercially priced Nigerian crude. Support long-term industrial finance.” CORAN said Nigeria should ultimately become a refining hub for Africa. “Nigeria should not continue exporting crude, exporting jobs, and importing the same petroleum products at considerable economic cost. “Our crude must increasingly power our refineries. Our refineries must increasingly supply our market. And Nigeria must ultimately become a refining hub for Africa.” “That should be the destination of petroleum-sector reform,” the association stated.

NGX OPENS SEPTEMBER ON BULLISH NOTE, GAINS N1.22TN

Trading on the Nigerian Exchange Limited opened the month of September on a bullish note on Wednesday, as capital appreciation in key mid-cap and blue-chip equities lifted total market capitalization by N1.22tn. The benchmark NGX All-Share Index appreciated by 1,883.24 basis points, or 0.77 percent, to settle at 246,082.63, while the market capitalization of equities expanded to close at N158.96tn from N157.74tn recorded in the previous session. This broad-based rally pushed the year-to-date market return higher to 58.14 percent as buying sentiment extended across multiple sectors on the local bourse. The sustained positive momentum was primarily anchored by price appreciation in energy, consumer goods and financial heavyweights, including Aradel Holdings, Nestlé Nigeria, HBM Nigeria, May & Baker Nigeria and First HoldCo. Market breadth closed overwhelmingly positive, with 40 advancing stocks outpacing 19 decliners. Heavyweight gains in Aradel Holdings, Access Holdings Plc topped the activity chart by volume, accounting for 129.89 million units valued at N4.16bn, while MTN Nigeria Communications Plc led the market in turnover value with deals worth N4.69bn. which surged  8.83 per cent, alongside Nestlé Nigeria’s 5.83 percent rise, provided substantial upward leverage to offset moderate profit-taking observed in select large-cap counters. Activity levels on the trading floor reflected mixed engagement, as total volume traded rose 7.44 percent to 651.32 million shares, while total transaction value increased 5.35 percent to N40.77bn. However, total executed deals contracted 18.16 per cent to settle at 43,760. Sectoral performance showed broad investor optimism across major industry groups. The NGX Oil & Gas Index posted the strongest performance with a 3.87 per cent surge, closely followed by the Insurance Index, which rose 3.34 per cent. The Banking and Consumer Goods indexes both registered gains of 0.87 percent, while the Industrial Goods sector recorded a 0.71 percent uptick by the close of business. Percentage price movements showed FTN Cocoa Processors Plc and McNichols Plc leading the gainers’ chart after soaring 10.00 per cent each to close at N8.25 and N4.95, respectively, followed by SUNU Assurances Nigeria Plc with a 9.94 per cent gain. Conversely, Tripple Gee & Company Plc fell 9.72 per cent to lead the decliners, while ABC Transport Plc and Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc dropped 9.52 per cent and 9.22 per cent, respectively. Capital market analysts attribute the sustained buying pressure to continued portfolio realignment by institutional and retail investors positioning for third-quarter value opportunities.

STOCK MARKET RALLY BOOSTS INVESTOR SENTIMENT, PROFITABILITY

The Nigerian equities market closed the first week of September 2026 on a bullish note, buoyed by robust trading volumes and widespread investor optimism across most sectors. The benchmark Nigerian Exchange All-Share Index surged 2.36 percent over the course of the five-day trading session to close at 246,992.44 points, up from 241,298.47 points recorded at the end of the previous week. In tandem with the index gain, total market capitalisation expanded 2.40 percent, adding trillions in equity value to settle at N159.559tn. Trading activity experienced a dramatic surge in both volume and turnover compared with the preceding week. A total turnover of 4.360 billion shares valued at N210.331bn was exchanged across 223,284 deals, reflecting a substantial increase from the 2.507 billion shares worth N123.223bn traded in 173,561 deals during the previous period. Activity culminated in an exceptionally high-volume session on Friday, 4 September, when over 2.24 billion shares worth N73.38bn changed hands in a single day. This impressive weekly surge reflects a broader year-to-date trajectory that has seen the Nigerian capital market post remarkable long-term growth. The All-Share Index has gained an unprecedented 58.72 percent year-to-date, driven by persistent domestic demand, favourable earnings results, and institutional rebalancing across core equity sectors. Market capitalisation and broader indices have expanded steadily throughout the year, with blue-chip components on the NGX 30 Index advancing 60.02 percent since the start of 2026. A Lagos-based stock market trader, Joy Bobaseye, said, “A major factor underpinning this sustained multi-month momentum is the ongoing capital recapitalisation exercise across Nigeria’s financial services industry. To meet heightened regulatory threshold requirements, commercial banks and insurance companies have actively tapped the capital market through rights issues, private placements, and debt-to-equity conversions. This structural transformation has bolstered equity listing bases, deepened overall market liquidity, and attracted significant fresh capital into listed financial firms.” Consequently, sectors such as Banking and Insurance have logged staggering year-to-date returns of 73.90 percent and 94.82 percent (on the Premium Board) respectively, further solidifying the exchange’s position as a preferred asset class.

FX TURNOVER PLUNGES TO $2.7BN IN ONE WEEK

Foreign exchange turnover at Nigeria’s official market fell sharply by 48.7 per cent week-on-week to $2.71bn in the week ended 28 August, 2026, from about $5.28bn recorded in the previous trading week. Data published by the Central Bank of Nigeria showed that trading activity was concentrated around 26 and 27 August, when transactions worth $913.76m and $1.06bn were recorded, respectively. Turnover on 24 August stood at $731.18m, while the market was closed on 25 August for a public holiday. The sharp decline in weekly turnover comes after the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market recorded more than $5bn in transactions in the preceding week, indicating a significant moderation in trading activity. The latest figures also come amid efforts by the CBN to deepen the efficiency and transparency of the foreign exchange market. CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, had said the apex bank’s interventions now account for only about 1.2 percent to 1.3 percent of total FX market turnover, dismissing suggestions that the bank is aggressively intervening to influence market pricing. Cardoso attributed the improved functioning of the market to reforms including the FX Code, the electronic trading platform and the revised foreign exchange manual. The CBN has also maintained that stronger external buffers have improved Nigeria’s capacity to withstand external shocks. Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves rose above $53bn during the week, reaching $53.11bn as of 24 August according to CBN data. The sharp week-on-week drop in turnover will be closely watched by market participants as they assess liquidity conditions and trading depth in the official FX market.

FINANCE, INSURANCE GROWTH SLUMPS TO 9.29% DESPITE RECAPITALIZATION

Nigeria’s finance and insurance sector grew by 9.29 per cent in real terms in the second quarter of 2026, indicating a sharp slowdown from the 16.13 per cent growth recorded in the same period last year. The latest performance, contained in the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) GDP report, represents a 6.84 percentage-point decline from the sector’s growth rate in Q2 2025. However, it was slightly higher than the 8.55 percent recorded in the first quarter of 2026. The moderation came as banks and insurance companies completed major recapitalisation exercises aimed at strengthening their balance sheets and meeting new regulatory capital requirements. Despite the slower annual growth, the sector remained an important contributor to Nigeria’s economic expansion, with financial and insurance activities identified by the NBS among the key drivers of non-oil GDP growth in the quarter. A breakdown of the sector showed that financial institutions continued to dominate activity, accounting for 87.22 per cent of real output, while insurance represented 12.78 per cent. On a nominal basis, financial institutions grew by 10.92 per cent year-on-year, while the insurance subsector recorded a stronger 18.88 per cent expansion. Overall nominal growth in the finance and insurance sector stood at 11.88 percent during the quarter. The stronger nominal performance of insurance comes as operators complete the recapitalisation exercise under the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA) 2025. According to industry data cited in the GDP report coverage, 43 insurance operators had raised at least N720bn to meet the new capital requirements. The banking industry also completed its own recapitalisation exercise, with commercial banks raising a combined N4.61tn before the 31 March, 2026 deadline. With the recapitalisation programmes now largely completed, the next phase for banks and insurers will be whether the stronger capital base translates into increased lending, investment and insurance penetration, particularly as monetary conditions potentially become more accommodative, analysts say.