The Central Bank of Nigeria’s Monetary Policy Committee has voted to raise the benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 18.75%.
The disclosure was made by the Acting Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Folashodun Shonubi, during the reading of the communiqué of the fourth Monetary Policy Committee meeting of the year on Tuesday.
He said, “In summary, the MPR voted to raise the policy rate by 25 basis points from 18.5 to 18.75 per cent.”
At the conclusion of the two-day meeting in Abuja, Mr. Shonubi announced to the media that the committee had decided to change the asymmetrical corridor surrounding the MPR by +100 and -300 basis points.
Analysts held differing expectations prior to the initial Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting following the removal of Godwin Emefiele as the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The Central Bank of Nigeria initiated a monetary policy tightening phase in May 2022, increasing its benchmark interest rate from 11.5% to 18.5% during that month.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has advocated for a reduction in interest rates to stimulate investment and consumer spending, thereby promoting sustainable economic growth.
Without the MPC considering solutions that will deal with the pressure aggressively, analysts predict that inflation will endure in light of the recent withdrawal of fuel subsidy, the rise in energy prices, and the liberalisation of the exchange rate.
