Nigerian Transcorp says IPO 36.2 pct subscribed

(Reuters) - Nigerian conglomerate Transcorp's initial public offer was 36.2 percent subscribed, the company said on Monday.

The conglomerate, set up in 2005 by a group of Nigerian business tycoons with the support of ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo, raised about 22 billion naira from the sale, which closed in February.


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Oil Rises on Concern Nigeria Unrest, North Sea Maintenance Will Cut Supply

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose to a 10-month high on
concern unrest in Nigeria and maintenance of a North Sea oil
field will curb supply as unexpected refinery closures cut fuel
output.

The main militant group in Nigeria's oil-producing Niger
River delta region condemned the kidnapping of a 3-year-old
British girl. Brent oil, produced in the North Sea, is also
rising because of planned maintenance at a field in the region.
Refineries in California, Texas and Kansas have shut or slowed
operations this week.


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Sugar Rises as Crude Oil Rally May Boost Demand for Brazil's Cane Ethanol

(Bloomberg) -- Sugar in New York rose to the highest
in more than a week on speculation that rising crude oil prices
will increase demand for ethanol, the gasoline substitute made
from sugar cane.

Crude oil reached a 10-month high of $72.94 a barrel today
on speculation unrest in Nigeria, the biggest African producer,
may disrupt supplies. Mills in Brazil, the world's largest sugar
producer, are using more than half the country's cane crop to
make fuel instead of sweetener.


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Crude Oil May Rise Next Week on Supply, U.S. Gasoline Risks, Survey Shows

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil may rise next week on
concern that oil supplies from Nigeria and Iran may be curbed and
U.S. gasoline output will drop because of unexpected refinery
closures.

Sixteen of 36 analysts surveyed, or 44 percent, said oil
prices will increase. Fourteen, or 39 percent, said prices will
fall and six forecast little change. Last week, 49 percent of
respondents said prices would rise.


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Guaranty Trust to Sell $750 Million of Shares in London and Nigeria

(Bloomberg) -- Guaranty Trust Bank Plc, Nigeria's
fifth-largest lender by market value, plans to sell stock in
London to fund growth.

Lagos, Nigeria-based Guaranty will offer $750 million of
shares, three people with knowledge of the transaction said. The
lender intends to raise $500 million from international investors
by selling global depositary receipts and the rest from
Nigerians, said the people, who declined to be identified because
the details are private.


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GlobalSantaFe probing its Nigerian operations

(Reuters) - U.S. offshore oil and gas drilling contractor GlobalSantaFe Corp. said on Monday it has started an internal probe of its Nigerian operations to determine whether anti-corruption laws were broken.

The company, based in Houston, said the investigation is focused on whether Nigerian customs agents fully complied with the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and local laws.


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Oil Is Little Changed as End of Strike in Nigeria Eases Supply Concerns

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil was little changed after a
nationwide strike of oil workers in Nigeria ended, easing concern
supplies from Africa's biggest producer would be further
disrupted.

The strike, which began June 20 after the government failed
to reverse an automobile fuel price increase, halted commerce and
drove up the country's gasoline prices sixfold on the black
market. New York oil prices rose the past two weeks partly on the
threat of strikes in Nigeria, where violence has already shut
down about a third of production.


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Analysts Are Split on the Direction of Oil Prices Next Week, Survey Shows

(Bloomberg) -- Analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News
were split over whether oil prices will rise or fall next week
amid surging U.S. inventories and threats to Nigerian shipments.

Eighteen of 48 analysts surveyed, or 38 percent, said oil
prices will increase. Another 18 said that prices will decline.
Twelve, or 25 percent, said prices will be little changed. Last
week, 49 percent of respondents said prices would rise.


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Oil steady as U.S. crude stocks cushion Nigeria risk

(Reuters) - London benchmark Brent crude , currently seen as the best indicator of world oil prices, rose 6 cents to $70.28 a barrel by 0348 GMT, after slipping 20 cents on Thursday. U.S. light crude eased 7 cents to $68.58 a barrel.




Union leaders in Nigeria vowed to extend their strike to protest against a rise in fuel prices to a third day on Friday, after talks with the government ended in a stalemate.


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Oil Eases From Nine-Month High; Nigerian Unions, Government Start Talks

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil traded near a nine-month high
in New York after reports Nigerian unions had started talks with
the government to avert a strike that would affect Africa's largest
oil industry.

Nigeria's two main oil unions plan to meet the government and
hold internal talks today to decide on the strike tomorrow, Reuters
reported, citing Peter Akpatason, the president of the National
Union of Petroleum & Natural Gas Workers.


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Chevron Halts 42,000 Barrels of Daily Nigerian Oil Output After Armed Raid

(Bloomberg) -- Chevron Corp.'s Nigeria unit halted
42,000 barrels a day of crude-oil production after a raid yesterday
on one of its facilities, a spokesman said.

Armed youths attacked the Abiteye flow station, causing some
damage to the facility, Chevron spokesman Femi Odumabo said in an
interview. The station was also shut down for several days last
month following a dispute with a local community.


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Nigeria cuts benchmark interest rate by 200 bps

(Reuters) - Nigeria's central bank has cut its benchmark interest rate by 200 basis points to 8 percent, the bank said in a statement on Wednesday.

The bank also narrowed the interest rate corridor around the benchmark Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) to +/- 250 basis points, from +/- 300 basis points, the bank added.


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U.S. Stocks Rise, Led by Energy Producers; Wal-Mart Stores Shares Advance

(Bloomberg) -- America's equity benchmarks climbed
to records again on analyst upgrades of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and
a rise in oil prices that buoyed energy shares.

Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, led the S&P 500 to
its fourth consecutive peak and the Dow Jones Industrial Average
to its 27th this year after four brokerages recommended the
company because of its planned $15 billion share-buyback plan.
Oil and gas companies climbed to a high after the price of crude
surged above $66 a barrel on concern supplies from Nigeria may
be disrupted.


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Crude Oil Advances on Increased Fuel Consumption, Nigeria Supply Concern

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose on signs high prices
aren't slowing the growth of fuel demand and that supplies from
Nigeria may be further disrupted.

Total implied fuel demand in the U.S. averaged 20.9 million
barrels in the four weeks ended May 25, up 2.4 percent from the
same period a year earlier, according to the Energy Department.
The department measures shipments from refineries, pipelines and
terminals to calculate demand. Union officials in Nigeria's oil
and gas industry said they plan to support a general strike.


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OPEC oil output edges higher in May - Reuters survey

(Reuters) - OPEC boosted crude oil output in May as higher supply from members including Algeria and the United Arab Emirates countered a drop in Nigeria, a Reuters survey showed on Friday.

Ten OPEC members bound by output targets, all except Iraq and Angola, pumped 26.76 million barrels per day (bpd), up 110,000 bpd from April, according to the survey of oil companies, traders, OPEC officials and analysts.


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Nigerian oil unions end strike

(Reuters) - Nigerian oil unions have suspended a two-day strike in the national oil company after the government agreed to a pay rise and other benefits, a union leader said.

The strike had threatened to halt oil shipments from the world's eighth largest exporter and had worsened fuel shortages across Nigeria in the days leading up to a change of government on Tuesday.


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FTSE joins global stocks descent, commodities weigh

(Reuters) - Britain's benchmark share index fell on Friday, dragged down by commodity shares and as global stock markets retreated amid a climate of concern over the health of the U.S. and Chinese economies.

Oil stocks weighed, with BP off 0.6 percent and Royal Dutch Shell also falling, despite oil rising over $71 on Friday on supply worries in Nigeria and tensions in Iran.


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Oil firm near 9-month highs on supply worries

(Reuters) - Oil was little changed on Friday, pausing after surging to a nine-month high in the previous session on supply worries in Nigeria and tensions in Iran.

Benchmark London crude was up 3 cents at $70.75 a barrel by 0115 GMT. It settled up 12 cents at $70.72 a barrel on Thursday.


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Brent oil near 9-month high on Nigeria, US gasoline

(Reuters) - Brent crude oil steadied over $70 a barrel on Tuesday after rallying to a 9-month high the previous day as more violence in Nigeria heightened worries of further disruptions to supplies.

Benchmark London Brent crude was up 2 cents at $70.51 a barrel by 0200 GMT, after surging $1.07 on Monday on news of an attack on a Nigerian oilfield. U.S. crude was down 2 cents at $66.25, after gaining $1.33 on Monday.


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