Crude Oil Falls Below 2026 Budget Benchmark
By Hajara Abdullahi
The price of crude oil has fallen below the $64.85 per barrel benchmark projected by the Federal Government in the 2026 budget.
The decline, recorded on Wednesday, followed an announcement by U.S. President Donald Trump regarding a $2 billion deal to import Venezuelan crude oil into the United States.
Brent crude dropped by 0.38 percent to $60.56 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell by 1.17 percent to $56.46 a barrel.
President Trump revealed that Venezuela would supply between 30 million and 50 million barrels of crude oil to the U.S. after declaring that America would oversee the country’s affairs until a political transition is achieved. According to reports, this move is expected to increase oil supplies to the United States, the world’s largest crude oil consumer, thereby exerting further downward pressure on global prices.
The current price decline poses a threat to Nigeria’s 2026 budget implementation, which is hinged on a benchmark of $64.85 per barrel. A large portion of the nation’s budget is allocated to debt servicing, making stable oil prices crucial to fiscal sustainability.
The 2026–2028 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper had set the budget parameters at $64.85 per barrel, with a daily oil production target of 1.84 million barrels and an exchange rate of N1,400 to the U.S. dollar for the 2026 fiscal year.
