Insecurity, high taxation, and an unreliable power supply remained the most severe constraints facing Nigerian businesses in November 2025, even as overall business confidence strengthened and expectations for growth, employment, and exchange rate stability improved.
This is according to the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Business Expectations Survey.
The survey shows that insecurity topped the list of business constraints with an index score of 70.1, reflecting the persistent cost of security risks on production, logistics, and investment decisions.
High or multiple taxes followed closely at 69.7, underscoring long-standing concerns over the cumulative burden of levies across different tiers of government.
Insufficient power supply ranked third at 69.3, highlighting the continued reliance on self-generated electricity and its impact on operating costs
High interest rates also featured prominently, scoring 67.2, as tight monetary conditions and elevated lending rates constrained access to credit. Financial problems, including liquidity pressures and weak balance sheets, rounded out the top five constraints with an index of 64.7.
What the report is saying
The report read, “Respondents identified Insecurity (70.1), High/Multiple Taxes (69.7), Insufficient Power Supply (69.3), High Interest Rate (67.2), and Financial Problems (64.7) as the top five (5) business constraints in November 2025, highlighting factors that directly impact on operational stability and profitability.”
Other notable challenges included high bank charges at 64.0, unclear economic laws at 61.4 and an unfavourable economic climate at 61.2. At the lower end of the top ten were poor infrastructure and an unfavourable political climate, both at 57.7, suggesting that financial and operational issues were more pressing than political concerns during the review period
Confidence improves across sectors despite structural bottlenecks
The prominence of these constraints stands in contrast to the generally positive outlook reported by firms. The aggregate Confidence Index stood at 37.5 points in November 2025, indicating optimism about the macroeconomy.
This confidence is projected to strengthen steadily, rising to 43.9 points next month, 49.6 points over the next three months, and peaking at 52.8 points over the next six months.
All major sectors expressed optimism about the macroeconomic environment, with the industry sector recording the highest confidence at 38.1 index points in the current month. Agriculture followed at 36.3 points, while services recorded 37.5 points.
Expectations remained positive across all sectors for the next month, next three months, and next six months, pointing to sustained confidence in economic activity.
At the level of firms’ own operations, the Mining and Quarrying sector led with a business confidence index of 50.0 points, reflecting strong sentiment within extractive industries.
Construction followed at 33.3 points, while market services recorded 31.6 points. Manufacturing, agriculture, and non-market services also remained in positive territory, signalling broad-based optimism despite prevailing constraints.
Respondents were particularly upbeat about the volume of business activity. Indices for volume of business activity, total orders, financial condition, and credit access were all positive, with firms expecting favourable conditions in December 2025, February 2026, and May 2026. This optimism suggests expectations of rising demand and improved turnover in the near to medium term.
Regionally, the macroeconomic outlook was positive across all zones, though uneven. The North-East recorded the highest optimism at 52.7 index points, while the South-East lagged at 18.7 points. Expectations for the next month and next three months were strongest in the North-East and North-West, while the North-West and South-West led expectations over the next six months.
