CBN leaves interest rate at 14%

THE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) yesterday kept its Monetary Policy Rate (MPR), its base interest rate, at 14 per cent.

CBN Governor Godwin Emiefele, who spoke to reporters after the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting in Abuja, said the recession corridor would come to an end by the third quarter because of the positive financial and economic indicators, which he said would endure.

                            

Defending the MPC’s position to retain the current level of the MPR, Emefiele, said: “In consideration of the challenges weighing down the domestic economy and the uncertainty in the global environment, the Committee decided by a unanimous vote of eight members in attendance to retain the MPR at 14 per cent, alongside all other parameters.

The MPC decided to retain “MPR at 14 per cent. Retain Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) at 22.5 per cent. Retain liquidity ratio at 30 per cent and Retain the asymmetric corridor at plus 200 and minus 500 basis points around the MPR.”

CIBN president charges risk managers on integrity

The President Chattered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), Prof Segun Ajibola has stressed the need for risk managers to always uphold the profession’s ethical values at all times.

Speaking at a dinner organized by Risk Managers Association of Nigeria (RIMAN) in Lagos recently, he stated that ‘the integrity of risk managers must never be compromised. Risk managers should make themselves reference point when it comes to character checking. They are the conscience of their establishments, their hands must be clean, and they must not be tempted. Failure of risk management creates gaps or can cause calamities.’

Speaking further, he said that risk management affects every facet of our lives from political leadership to civil service, family and corporate life. According to him, every staff in an organization is a risk management ambassador. Risk must also be managed.

Economy begins slow recovery from recession

The nation’s economy has begun a slow recovery from recession although the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) contracted again by 0.52 per cent in real terms in the first quarter of 2017.

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) disclosed yesterday that this contraction, which represented the fifth in the quarterly series, starting from the first quarter of 2016, raised hopes that recovery is on the way.

The nation’s inflation, which has moderated for the third consecutive time, has appeared discriminatory, as some items in the food index, which are patronized by the masses, have remained on the high side.

Nigeria’s debt to climb to 24.1% of GDP by 2018 – IMF

Nigeria’s indebtedness will climb to 24.1 per cent of its Gross Domestic Product by 2018, the International Monetary Fund has said.

The IMF, which stated this in its World Economic and Financial Surveys, also projected that by the end of 2017, the country’s current indebtedness would have reached 23.3 per cent of the GDP.

The country closed 2016 with a debt to GDP ratio of 18.6 per cent. By the end of 2015, Nigeria’s debt to GDP ratio stood at 12.1 per cent, according to the Bretton Wood institution.

Nigeria’s GDP for the year ended December 31, 2016 stood at N67.98tn, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

Economy shrinks again, MAN, LCCI see recovery in third quarter

The National Bureau of Statistics on Tuesday released the Gross Domestic Product report for the first quarter of this year, which showed that the economy contracted by 0.52 per cent in the period.

With the negative growth rate of -0.52 per cent, the Nigerian economy is still in recession.

The rate of growth for the first quarter of 2017 is, however, an improvement over the revised -1.73 per cent GDP growth rate as of December 2016.

This is the fifth consecutive quarter of contraction that the economy would record since the first quarter of 2016.

CBN to sell dollars to clear demand backlog

The Central Bank of Nigeria is planning to sell an undisclosed amount of dollars to settle a backlog of foreign exchange demand for airlines, fuel and raw material importers.

Foreign exchange traders said the CBN had asked commercial banks to submit bids for dollars to cover the previously unmet demand for hard currency for specific sectors as it tried to improve dollar liquidity and ease pressure on the naira.