Dear Subscriber,

As we go into 2018, an election year, the expectations of the average Nigerian for economic prosperity will be heightened. There will be more propaganda than analysis and Nigerian youths will decipher the noise from the substance and the facts from the fake news.

This is not to forget that 2017 was half politics and half economics. The outcome was slow recovery, lower inflation and a boost in external reserves. The naira stabilized in the forex market after a precipitous crash in 2016. Annual GDP growth at 1% was definitely below expectations and optimality.

Meanwhile, Ghana, our neighbor and traditional rival, reduced interest rates four times whilst the CBN held rates constant. The outcome was a growth rate of 9.3% in Q3 in Ghana compared to 1.4% in Nigeria. The good news is that in spite of a Moody’s downgrade, the finance ministry and DMO were able to close two Eurobond issues at attractive rates.

In this edition of the FDC Bi-monthly publication, the FDC Think-Tank analyzes these issues and their implications on businesses and the economy at large.

Enjoy your read.

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