The Monetary Policy Committee of the Central Bank of Nigeria, on Wednesday, unanimously voted to increase its monetary policy interest rates to 18.5 per cent. The PUNCH reports in March that the MPC of the bank voted to increase the benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points to 18 per cent. The CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, disclosed this while reading the communiqué of the third MPC meeting of the year on Wednesday. Justifying the rising inflation rate, the MPC blamed the high energy cost and challenges around the supply chain, among others, which are beyond the reach of the CBN. The apex bank had increased the MPR from 11.5 per cent earlier last year to 18 per cent in March this year across six consecutive rate hikes.

Source: Punch May 24, 2023 23:04 UTC