Brent crude drops below $92 as US‑Iran pause eases Middle East tension fears
Brent crude fell more than 5% on Monday, dropping $4.89 to $91.89 a barrel after the United States and Iran paused attacks over the weekend, raising hopes of a diplomatic de-escalation that could allow shipping to resume through the Strait of Hormuz. U.S. WTI crude slipped $4.67 to $84.64 a barrel, down 5.23%. Both benchmarks hit their lowest levels in nearly a week after rising for three straight weeks. Shipping data showed fewer than ten commodity vessels moving through the Strait of Hormuz daily over the weekend, and traffic through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait also declined after Houthi attacks on Saudi Red Sea facilities.
For Nigerians, the price decline raises hopes that petrol prices, which had risen above N1000 per litre during the recent crisis, could fall back toward the N800-N900 range seen before the hostilities. Marketers say a sustained drop might even lure compressed-natural-gas users back to petrol. At the same time, the Central Bank of Nigeria held its monetary policy rate at 26.5%, citing global uncertainties stemming from the renewed Middle East hostilities and the need to keep inflation in check.
Will lower global oil prices translate to cheaper fuel at Nigerian pumps, or will other factors keep costs high? How might the CBN’s tight monetary stance affect your borrowing or spending plans?