Macroeconomic Report & Economic Updates
August 19, 2016
Nigeria Economic Update (Issue 35)
Recent report in the media highlights that Nigerias
GDP has dropped to $296 billion in 2016, in contrast to the $481 billion
recorded in 20151 and Nigeria has lost its position as Africas
largest economy to South Africa. This conclusion was based on the computation
of GDP with current naira-dollar exchange rate. However, while the naira has
significantly lost its official value since the adoption of a flexible exchange
rate, estimating GDP merely with a single exchange rate figure (rather than its
yearly average) cannot be regarded as an appropriate method to conclude on Africas
largest economy.
Related
Public Debt-to-GDP Ratio
Public Debt-to-GDP Ratio: The ratio of Nigerias cumulative government debt to national GDP has maintained an upward trend indicating the countrys declining economic productivity and ability to repay
Nigeria Economic Update (Issue 11)
Recently released report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) indicates price increase of selected food items for the month of February 2017, relative to January 2017. Specifically, prices of the selected 24 food items ranged from N47.42 N1, 812 in January to N42.90 N1, 955.10 in February 2017. Average price of all selected items increased month-on-month by 2.7 percent to N540.05. Non-seasonal agriculture factors such as rising cost of crop production, imported products, and transportation continue to drive domestic food prices higher as domestic food supply contracts. This is also reflective of the high food inflation rate in February (18.53 percent) relative to 17.82 percent recorded in January 2017. Strengthening Nigerias crude oil production, supporting local agricultural production, and improving forex policies to straighten the naira remain critical in improving food supply and reducing inflation.