BY Mayowa Tijani
It is a big bad black Friday for crude oil as prices continue to crash across the world.
On Friday, Brent crude fell below the $60 per barrel benchmark to hit $58.92 for the first time in 2018, following fears of oversupply across the global oil market.
Oil prices climbed as high as $85 a barrel only in October 2018, shedding more than 30 percent within the past 30 days.
On Friday alone, crude prices have fallen by at least six percent, with Brent crude losing nearly $4 through the day.
Donald Trump, president of the United states, had repeatedly expressed his interest in low oil prices, calling on the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to increase supply to cut prices.
Under Trump’s leadership, the US became the largest producer of crude oil, producing as much as 11 million barrels per day.
“Oil prices getting lower. Great! Like a big Tax Cut for America and the World. Enjoy! $54, was just $82. Thank you to Saudi Arabia, but let’s go lower,” Donald Trump tweeted on Wednesday.
OPEC, via a mail to TheCable, said the basket price for crude oil as at Thursday, stood at $62.08, down from $62.33 on Wednesday.
The recent developments in the oil market are bittersweet for Nigeria, Africa’s largest oil exporter, who also doubles as the continents largest importer of petroleum products.
On the bad side, the fall in oil prices translates into an immediate fall in Nigeria’s oil revenue, which is the mainstay of the biggest economy in Africa.
The 2018 budget is benchmarked against $51 per barrel — only $8 away from the current trading price of Brent crude, reducing the amount of money expected to accrue into the nation’s excess crude oil account.
On the sweet side, a fall in oil prices means a fall in the prices of petroleum products, such as premium motor spirit, which powers major vehicles in Nigeria.
This means the amount of money the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) spends on subsidising petrol for Nigerians will fall considerably.
Major dealers in petroleum products across the world have begun to cut prices of premium motor spirit and other oil derivatives.
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