CBN moves interest rate to 18.75%

The Monetary Policy Committee of the Central Bank of Nigeria has voted to increase the benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 18.75 per cent.

The Acting CBN Governor, Folashodun Shonubi, disclosed this while reading the communiqué of the fourth MPC 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.”

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Addressing journalists at the end of the two-day meeting in Abuja, Mr. Shonubi said the committee voted to adjust the asymmetric corridor at +100 and -300 basis points around the MPR.

Analysts’ expectations had been divergent ahead of the first MPC meeting after the suspension of Godwin Emefiele as the governor of the CBN.

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The CBN started its monetary policy tightening cycle in May 2022, with its benchmark interest rate rising from 11.5 per cent to 18.5 per cent in May this year.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had said interest rates needed to be reduced to increase investment and consumer purchasing in ways that sustain the economy at a higher level.

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Analysts had said that with the recent removal of fuel subsidy, the increase in energy prices, and the liberalisation of the exchange rate, inflationary pressure will no doubt persist unless the MPC considers options that will deal with the pressure aggressively.