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The Naira, yesterday, depreciated against the dollar at the parallel market, just as crude oil price hit five-week high, gaining about 10 per cent in a three-day rally to close at $48.05 as speculations intensified over potential producer action to support prices amid a crude glut.
Data from market intelligence firm, Genscape, estimating a draw of more than 350,000 barrels at the Cushing, Oklahoma delivery point for U.S. crude futures, last week, added to the bullish sentiment.
Meanwhile, the naira lost N3 to exchange at N393, from N390 posted on Friday; while it traded at N505 and N435 against the Pound Sterling and the Euro respectively. At the Bureau De Change (BDC) segment of the market, the naira closed at N385, N505 and N420 against the dollar, Pound Sterling and the Euro, respectively.
The naira, however appreciated at the official interbank market to close at N317.34, from N320.25 posted on Friday. Traders at the market said that the demand for dollars was still on the high side. The market was eagerly awaiting the sale of foreign exchange by banks to BDCs during the week.
Oil extends rally to five-week highs on talk of producer action
Brent crude rose $1.08, or 2.3 percent, to $48.05 a barrel after rising to $48.10 earlier, its highest since July 7. Brent has gained about 10 percent cumulatively in the past three sessions, its most in such a stretch since May. Since the start of August, it is up 12 percent.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude gained $1.06, or 2.4 percent, to $45.55, after rallying earlier to $45.61, a peak since July 21. WTI has gained nearly 10 percent on the month. Members of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries are to meet on the sidelines of the International Energy Forum, which groups producers and consumers, in Algeria from September 26-28.
Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak bolstered hopes yesterday that oil producing nations could take action to stabilise prices, telling a Saudi newspaper that his country was consulting with Saudi Arabia and other producers to achieve market stability.
“With Russia joining the chorus, an array of bullish oil ETFs saw a sizeable influx of capital that lifted crude values by more than $5 a barrel off recent lows,” said Jim Ritterbusch of Chicago-based oil markets consultancy Ritterbusch & Associates.
“While we see very little possibility of an actualisation of curtailed OPEC output, there will likely be enough chatter during the next five to six weeks to deter selling in allowing WTI to gravitate at around the $45 area, at least through the second half of this month,” he added.
But other analysts were sceptical that the rally would continue. “In our view a renewed price correction cannot be ruled out if market participants start focusing on the supply side again, for the latest drilling activity figures in the U.S. cast doubts that the oversupply is really being eroded,” Commerzbank analyst Carsten Fritsch said in a note.
There are also doubts that Saudi Arabia and other major OPEC members such as Iran will put aside a market share battle in order to prop up prices.
On the demand side, the world’s three biggest economies – the United States, China and Japan – all published downbeat economic data between Friday and Monday that could signal an erosion soon in oil demand.

The Federal Prison, Owerri, which was initially constructed by the colonial masters and billed to have a carrying capacity of 550 inmates, is now housing over 2,500 persons.
The Imo State Commissioner of Police, CP, Mr. Taiwo Lakanu, who disclosed this while inaugurating the state’s Eminent People’s Forum, EPF, yesterday, in Owerri, equally linked the development to the successes recorded by the police command.
“The Owerri Prisons, which has carrying capacity of 550 inmates, now has over 2,500 inmates”, the Cap said.
According to the IMO police boss, a lot of successes have been achieved by security agencies with the support, cooperation and collaboration of the peace loving people of Imo.
While admitting that it was not yet uhuru, as some bad elements were still disturbing the peace of the state, the CP, however, pointed out that crime thrives not because of the violence of the bad people, but because of the silence of the good people.
Continuing to the CP said that the synergy between the security agencies and the citizenry, has not only yielded tremendous success, but has also resulted in massive arrests, prosecution, annihilation of some high profile kidnap, armed robbery, cultists and child trafficking kingpins, adding that this has led to massive turnaround of criminal activities in the state.
He assured the masses, especially credible informants, of confidentiality of information, stressing that the Inspector General of Police expects all concerned citizens to embrace the new approach to policing without fear or favour

THE immediate past Registrar/Chief Executive Officer, Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Professor, Dibu Ojerinde, has said his removal was not occasioned by rumoured disagreement he had with the Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu.
Professor Dibu Ojerinde, Ex-JAMB Registrar
He said contrary to reports that he had misunderstanding with the minister, there was no such thing, adding that he had prepared his mind for the removal several months before it was finally announced.
He appreciated President Muhammadu Buhari and the minister for giving him the opportunity to stay in office till the time he was removed.
The professor of Test and Measurement and pioneer Registrar/CEO of the National Examination Council (NECO) said this during a thanksgiving service at the First Baptist Church, Igboho, Oyo State.
He said he was grateful to all Nigerians, especially former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan as well as President Buhari, for believing in him and giving the opportunities to serve his country.
“I have always believed in God’s timing. I had prepared my mind that anything could happen and this development did not meet me unexpectedly. Even when I met with the minister, he said he would have loved that I finished my term, I told him that it was God’s time and that God’s time is always the best.”
”I am grateful to him and to President Buhari as well as his predecessors in office, Chief Obasanjo and Dr Jonathan. In fact, I am grateful to all Nigerians for giving me the platforms to serve my country in the last 25 years.”
Before his appointment as JAMB boss, he was first appointed as the Director of Monitoring, National Primary Education Commission in 1990, and had since served in several capacities in the education sector including the National Board for Education Measurement, Minna, which later became NECO

Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State has alleged that President Muhammadu Buhari’s seeming ineptitude has unleashed unprecedented sufferings on Nigerians, stressing that Nigeria is in the hands of wrong managers.
Fayose and Buhari
Fayose said conditions of Nigerians under the All Progressives Congress, APC-led government have been made worse because
“the country is in the hands of wrong managers who do not know what to do and out of nepotism, are not ready to be assisted by those who know.”
The governor said “Presently, Nigerians are suffering, hungry and angry because the APC Federal Government has run the country aground. Nigeria has gone beyond recession, the economy has collapsed completely and painfully. Those who should revive the economy do not have any clue as to what to do.”
In a statement by his Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, Governor Fayose said Nigeria was experiencing the worst form of nepotism in the history of government in the country, noting that “Nepotism is the reason our President discarded competent people in his party that should be running the government with him and opted for his relatives, friends, in-laws and very close associates.”
He said: “The only qualification to hold key positions in the Presidency is to know a certain nephew of the President or be a member of his family. That is nepotism and what nepotism breeds is incompetence.
“The most influential person in the Presidency today is said to be one Mamman Daura, who is a Buhari’s nephew. The Personal Assistant to President Buhari is said to be the son of Mamman Daura, while the State Chief of Protocol is said to be married to Mamman Daura’s daughter,”
“It is also the height of nepotism that apart from just two, all security chiefs and heads of all the paramilitary agencies in Nigeria, as well as all the political-heads overseeing all the military and paramilitary arms and agencies are from the North of Nigeria,” the governor lamented.
According to him, President Buhari was obviously being tormented by fear of the unknown, which he described as the main reason people take to nepotism.
The statement reads: “As a leader, you don’t need to fear anything. But the moment a leader peeps into the future, realising that his lack of capacity could have consequential effects on him, such a leader will definitely resort to nepotism to protect himself.
While lamenting the parlous state of the country’s economy, Governor Fayose said; “Most of those people that aided the emergence of President Buhari must be having a rethink now, but it is too late.”
In addition, he said, “Interestingly, political affiliation has nothing to do with hunger, poverty and lack. Exchange rate was less than N200 to $1 when President Buhari took over power, as at today, it has gone beyond N400 to $1 and Naira is still undergoing a free fall. One bag of rice was less than N8, 000 as at May 2016, it is now N20, 000. Kerosene is now beyond the reach of the masses.”
“Nigerians voted for change because the APC promised them solutions to the country’s problems, but all we hear every day from the APC Federal Government are complaints upon complaints as if Nigerians elected a government of complaints.”
“Obviously, the APC government has failed Nigerians and the President has resorted to putting his immediate family members and close associates in key government positions to protect himself from the fear of the unknown that has enveloped him”, he stated.

THE Lagos State Government has sealed up a popular hotel around Agric area of Ikorodu Local Government over illegal and criminal activities, even as it shut theponmo(animal skin) processing section of the Oko-Oba Abattoir and Lairage Complex, Agege over health concerns.
It will be recalled that in the renewed war against upsurge in criminal activities, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, few days ago vowed to impound any building or property found to be harboring suspected militants, pipeline vandals and other criminals in the state.
Ambode, in a statement yesterday, through Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Steve Ayorinde, said: “We urge members of the public not to allow any building to be used to harbor criminals or serve as a base for criminal activities.
Recent security investigations in the Ikorodu area of the state have revealed that the hotel has been associated with illegal and criminal activities and the Lagos State government has accordingly decided to seal up the hotel until further notice. Government will immediately reinforce the presence of security agents in and around Ikorodu axis to further reassure residents of the determination of the government to safeguard lives and properties in the area.”
Agege Abattoir
In Agege, the government through the Commissioner for Agriculture, Mr. Toyin Suarau, who led a team of the ministry officials and men of the Lagos State Task Force to Oko-Oba Abattoir and Lairage Complex, said the closure became necessary because of the health hazard posed by activities of the processors who burnt cow skin with tyres.
Suarua explained: “I wish to make it clear that that the use of tyres for cow skin processing has been reported to the state government sometimes ago and has been dealt with but the return to this unhygienic method of processing in the complex leaves much to be desired. This is why this section of the complex had to be closed.
”The activities of these ‘Ponmo’ processors constitute a health risk not only to inhabitants of the complex but to residents of adjoining communities and to the processors themselves. Also, the health effect of burning tyres alone are enormous let alone it use in the processing of human food.
“Burning tyres releases a toxic soup of pollutants with hundreds of the different toxic pollutants and tremendous number of small particles settling deep in the lungs while airborne emissions from open tire fires have long been suspected of representing a serious impact to health and the environment.