In what is the trending news in the Nigerian economic sphere, the National Bureau of Statistics released Q2 2017 figures, which indicated a 0.55% growth in the economy. This is the first growth the economy has recorded in 5 quarters. However, the exit from recession is confirmed not only by the economic growth but by other indicators. These are the 4 other indicators that confirm that the recession is over.
Purchaser’s Managers Index: Nigeria’s composite PMI for the past 5 months has been over 50 indicating growth and expansion. The PMI stood at 53.6 for August 2017. A composite PMI above 50 points indicates that the manufacturing/non-manufacturing economy is generally expanding. the consistent trend for the past 5 months suggest that the GDP data is in line with business sentiments.
Inflation rate: Another very telling indicator of how the economy is performing is the inflation rate. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) which is used to measure inflation showed a sixth consecutive decline in the rate of headline year on year inflation since January 2017.
Foreign Portfolio Investment: In another confirmation of economic growth, the country’s January to July 2017 monthly foreign inflows outpaced outflows, indicating stronger foreign investor trust in the economy.The total FPI transactions from January to July 2017 increased by 56.54% from N313.49 billion for the same period in 2016 to N490.73 billion.
Stock market: After a horrendous 2016, the Nigerian Stock Exchange has enjoyed a wonderful 2017 so far, with the All share Index rising 28.6% year-on-year from 27,599 points as at August 31, 2016 to 35,504 points on the same date in 2017. The stock market growth indicates that domestic investment sentiment is growing steadily with companies listed on the bourse performing definitely better than they did in 2016.
