The rumoured devaluation of the naira by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN was on Tuesday laid to rest as the apex bank’s Monetary Policy Committee, MPC, voted against it in defiance of the pressure being mounted on the naira by the US dollar.
The CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele explained after the MPC meeting that interest rates would be lowered to ease liquidity in the economy. The MPC also voted to retain the benchmark rate at 11% in order to support the economy which has been hit by falling oil prices.
While disclosing that “the current episode of lower oil prices is expected to remain over a very long period,” Emefiele noted that “it is imperative to brace up for a longer period of low government revenues from oil sources which will necessitate hard and uncomfortable choices.”
President Muhammadu Buhari has not hidden his ill disposition to the devaluation of the naira as he believes that it would only amount to importing inflation since Nigeria is not an exporting country.
