By Emeka Anaeto, Business Editor & Emm Ujah
ABUJA — The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reduced the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate projection to 1.75 per cent for full year 2018, significantly below both Federal Government and the International Monetary Funds, IMF, projections.

The federal governemnt had revised its projections downward to 2.1 percent from 3.5 percent as contained in the 2018 budget.

Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projection was that Nigeria would grow by 1.9 percent this year, up from 0.8 percent last year.

In the Medium Term Economic Framework, recently presented to the National Assembly by the executive arm, the federal government indicated that real growth rate in the second quarter was 1.5 per cent, down from an initial budgeted growth rate of 3. 5 per cent.

But going forward, the federal government projected that growth rate would be as high as 3.0 per cent in 2019; 3.6 per cent in 2020; and 3.9 per cent in 2021.

CBN’s new growth rate projection was contained in the economic outlook of the Monetary Policy Committee, MPC, communique which was read at the press briefing by its Governor, Mr. Godfwin Emefiele, in Abuja, yesterday.

“Overall, the outlook for the economy remains positive with a growth   projection of 1.75 per cent in 2018,” it said.

Inflationary pressure

The CBN also said that the fall in the inflation rate recorded last month would face fresh pressures that would push it up in the months ahead.

“The inflation outlook suggests continued but moderate inflationary pressure to the end of 2018, based largely on increased consumer spending for the Christmas festivities, election-related expenditure and increased pace of implementation of the 2018 Federal government budget,” it said.

However, the apex bank observed that “improvements in the security, increased harvests as well as a stable exchange rate would be expected to moderate the rise in inflation.

  How we moderated impact of US policy rate normalization – CBN

The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, has indicated that Nigeria’s economy has largely been protected from the impacts of the monetary policy normalization in the United States of America, United Kingdom and Euro Zone which led to the outflows of investments from Nigeria and other emerging markets.

The apex bank said it had taken measures to increase foreign exchange inflows into the country.

Fielding questions from the media at the post Monetary Policy Committee, MPC, meeting yesterday in Abuja, the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, stated: “For Nigeria the impact (of rate normalization) in our view has been somewhat moderated given that we have been able to achieve a stable exchange rate over this period and also we have not lost reserve and if we have lost, I would say just very marginal amount that we have lost.

“The CBN took a number of intervening actions but most cogent of which is the Investors and Exporters window which we introduced in April 2017.”

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