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CBN raises interest rate to 18.5%, states reasons

The Monetary Policy Committee of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has unanimously decided to raise the interest rate on its monetary policy to 18.5%.
In March, according to ENIGERIA, the bank’s MPC voted to raise the benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points, to 18%.
This information was provided in the communiqué from the third MPC meeting of the year by CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele on Wednesday.
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At the conclusion of the two-day meeting in Abuja, Mr. Emefiele spoke to the media and announced that the committee had decided to maintain the asymmetrical corridor at +100 and -700 basis points around the MPR.
The MPC cited a number of factors, including high energy costs and difficulties in the supply chain that are out of the CBN’s control, as justifications for the rising inflation rate.
He added, “The current trend in price development would continue to be monitored by the bank with greater collaboration with fiscal authority to address the drivers of inflation.”
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.