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Abuja, March 17, 2026 – Nigeria’s headline inflation rate dropped marginally to 15.06% in February from 15.1% in January 2026. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) disclosed this in the latest edition of its the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Inflation Report released on Monday. The report attributed the gradual slide in the inflation rate during the month to a modest slowdown in the pace of rising consumer prices compared to the previous month. “On a year-on-year basis, the Headline inflation rate was 11.21% lower than the rate recorded in …

Lagos, March 17, 2026 – The Nigerian currency, the Naira, appreciated at the official foreign exchange market on Monday, closing at N1,355 to the dollar. The exchange rate had closed at N1,363.50 to the dollar at the market on Friday, appreciating by N8.50 against the dollar on Monday. The naira has been appreciating against the dollar at the market in the last four trading days on Tuesday when it was N1,390.50 to the dollar. Bid rates quoted by dealers in the market on Monday ranged between N1,354 and N1,365.35 to …

London, March 17, 2026 – Oil prices rose more than 2% on ​Tuesday, reversing some of the previous session’s losses, on worries about supply with the Strait of ‌Hormuz mostly shut and U.S. allies rebuffing calls to send warships to help tankers move through the vital waterway. Brent futures jumped $2.74, or 2.7%, to $102.95 a barrel by 0357 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained $2.45, or 2.6%, to $95.95. In the previous session, Brent futures ​settled 2.8% lower while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude slid 5.3% …

By Ron Bousso London, March 16, 2026 – The U.S. is rapidly running out of shock absorbers to cushion the oil market from the loss of Middle Eastern crude supplies as the Iran war rages, raising the risk of a deeper global economic slowdown if demand destruction accelerates. As the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran enters its third week, at least 15% of the world’s oil supplies remain effectively trapped inside the Gulf following the closure of ​the Strait of Hormuz, the region’s vital maritime chokepoint, according to Reuters calculations. Saudi Arabia, …

London, March 16, 2026 – Oil prices ‌rose on Monday as the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran continued to disrupt oil production and shipping in the Middle East, despite U.S. President Donald Trump’s call for global efforts to secure the vital Strait of Hormuz. Brent crude futures rose $2.30, or 2.2%, to $105.44 a barrel by 0903 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained $1.29, or 1.3%, to $100 ​a barrel. Both contracts have surged more than 40% this month to their highest since 2022, after the U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran prompted …

By Paul Ejime “Nigeria reached out to the U.S. and Ghana for cooperation before the American military strikes against Jihadist terrorist groups in December 2025,” – Ghana’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Samuel Ablakwa. Abuja, March 12, 2026 – Africa’s Sahel region, extending to West Africa, is regarded as the epicentre of global terrorism, with insecurity disrupting governance and leading to unnecessary loss of lives and humanitarian displacements. The erstwhile multilateral frameworks, such as the G5 Sahel, the Accra Declaration on Terrorism and Unconstitutional Change of Government, and the Multinational Joint Task …

Sao Paulo, March 12, 2026 – Cocoa farmers in Brazil have slammed the brakes on new planting projects following a 70% plunge in cocoa prices from their 2024 record high, stalling growth that investors had expected would make the country a ​major supplier of the main ingredient in chocolate. At current prices of around $3,000 per metric ton, farmers and analysts told Reuters they expected around half the projects in Brazil to ‌grow cocoa on an industrial scale could be canceled. The projects, centered in Northeastern Brazil, would have added …

Lagos, March 12, 2026 – The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) on Wednesday reduced its petrol price to N1,165 per liter from N1,260 per litre. The price reduction has been reflected by all NNPCL filling stations in Abuja and environs. The NNPC price reduction followed the Dangote Refinery price reduction on Tuesday which  reduced its ex-gantry price of petrol to ₦1,075 per litre ₦1,175 per litre. Anthony Chiejina, the Dangote Group Chief Spokesman, said the company had also reduced the price of diesel to ₦1,430 per litre from ₦1,620 …

Washington, March 12, 2026 – The Iran war is causing unprecedented turmoil in oil markets, hitting 7.5% of global supply and an even bigger swath of exports, the International Energy Agency said. “The war in the Middle East is creating the largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market,” the IEA said in its monthly report on Thursday. The previous day, its members agreed to release an unprecedented 400 million barrels from emergency reserves to counterract the chaos. The most immediate impact of the war on energy …

Kentucky, March 12, 2026 – President Donald Trump said the massive release of emergency oil reserves approved by the International Energy Agency would ease energy price pressures while the US seeks to “finish the job” in its campaign against Iran. Speaking in Kentucky on Wednesday evening, Trump said the move would “substantially reduce oil prices as we end this threat to America and this threat to the world.” The confirmation did little to calm volatile markets. Brent crude jumped above $100 a barrel after Oman cleared all vessels from its …