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Nigeria's Monetary Policy Committee decided to maintain a 14% benchmark interest rate

According to the report of the Central Bank of Nigeria on September 25, the Nigerian Monetary Policy Committee meeting held from September 24 to 25 decided to continue to maintain the existing monetary policy, namely 14% benchmark interest rate, 22.5% deposit reserve ratio, 30%. The liquidity ratio, the benchmark interest rate + 200 to -500 basis points of the asymmetric interest rate corridor. The Central Bank of Nigeria statement stated that the Monetary Policy Committee believes that the current economy is still facing downside risks and inflationary pressures. A tight monetary policy may help curb inflation, prevent capital outflows, increase foreign exchange reserves, and stabilize the foreign exchange market. However, tightening policies will further weaken economic growth momentum and raise credit costs. After considering various factors, 7 of the 10 members attending the meeting voted to maintain the benchmark interest rate of 14%, and the other 3 voted to increase the benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points. According to the results of the vote, the Nigerian Monetary Policy Committee decided to continue to maintain the existing monetary policy, and then make policy adjustments after a clearer and clearer economic signal emerged. The meeting also called on the government to speed up the implementation of the 2018 budget and the "economic growth and recovery plan" to further stimulate the economic recovery process and create more jobs. At the same time, the "Petroleum Industry Act" will be adopted as soon as possible to promote the sustainable development of the petroleum sector and increase the positive contribution of the sector to the stable growth of the Nigerian economy. (Wang Hao)