Nigeria MPC Meeting: Economists Say Slow Growth, High Inflation, Naira Value Will Top Agenda

Nigeria MPC Meeting: Economists Say Slow Growth, High Inflation, Naira Value Will Top Agenda

When members of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meet for their 244th meeting in Abuja tomorrow, economic experts believe the key policy considerations will be the current stagnation in the nation’s growth rate, high inflation, naira volatility, precarious state of the nation’s external reserves and anxiety over the policy thrust of the incoming administration. Speaking in separate interviews, the economic experts also explained that although the committee may not want to…

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Nigerian central bank orders lenders to get tough with bad debtors

Nigerian central bank orders lenders to get tough with bad debtors

LAGOS (Reuters) – Nigeria’s central bank ordered banks on Friday to crack down on borrowers with non-performing loans (NPLs) in a move aimed at avoiding a repeat of a 2009 industry bailout that cost the government $4 billion. A sharp drop in the global price of oil, Nigeria’s main export, has triggered a currency crisis in Africa’s largest economy and strained government’s finances, while also harming the cash flow of some companies with foreign currency…

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Nigeria: 2015 Budget Snapshot

Nigeria: 2015 Budget Snapshot

The Nigerian Federal House of Representative on Thursday passed the sum of N4.5tn budget for the 2015 fiscal year with an increase of N135.4bn over initial proposal submitted in November 2014. In addition, the House has adopted an oil benchmark of US$53.0, daily oil production of 2.3mbpd, exchange rate of N190.00/US$1.00 and fiscal deficit/GDP ratio of 1.1%. Surprisingly, no provision for fuel subsidy was made in the approved 2015 Appropriation Act. A further review of…

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Nigerian current-account deficit is 0.1% GDP in Q4 2014

Nigerian current-account deficit is 0.1% GDP in Q4 2014

The CBN’s External Sector Development Report for Q4 2014 shows a modest current-account deficit equivalent to 0.1% of GDP. This was to be expected, given that the international oil price fell by about US$25/b over the quarter in question. The report also revised earlier data, notably for Q2 for which a surplus representing 1.1% of GDP was transformed into a 0.4% deficit. The deterioration predates the latest slide in the oil price and can be traced to…

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Nigeria Capital Market: Week Ended 17th April, 2015

Nigeria Capital Market: Week Ended 17th April, 2015

Nigerian Stock Market Weekly Summary and Outlook The NSE ASI added 20bps W-o-W as the index closed at 35,005.42pts. Market capitalization advanced N25.7bn to N11.9tn while YtD performance remained positive at 1.0% at the close of the week. On the contrary, activity level measured by volume traded retreated 45.3%% to 1.9bn units even as value traded declined 23.0% to N19.4bn. The Banking sector topped the sector advancers for the week, rising 1.5% due to rally…

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Nigerian Foreign Reserves at Record Low

Nigerian Foreign Reserves at Record Low

According to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), reported levels of the Nigerian External Reserves (“the Reserves”) as at 15th of April 2015 stands at US$29.3bn – its lowest level since 2010. Worthy of note is the fact that the Reserves have been on a downward trend since the beginning of the year on the back of falling global oil prices and CBN’s resolve to defend the Naira. The Reserves has declined US$5.0bn (16.9%) in…

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Templeton’s Mobius says good time to invest in Nigerian stocks

Templeton’s Mobius says good time to invest in Nigerian stocks

LONDON (Reuters) – Veteran emerging markets investor, Franklin Templeton’s Mark Mobius said on Thursday that it was a good time to invest in Nigeria, which he sees as one of the most attractive frontier market destinations. “There are significant challenges ahead, but we believe the positives outweigh the negatives and think it’s a good time to invest in Nigeria – if we are patient and selective,” Mobius, who runs the Templeton Emerging Markets Trust said…

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