Credit to government rises by 42% to N28.4trn

Credit to the government rose by N8.4 trillion or 42 per cent, month-on-month to N28.4 trillion in May from N19.98 trillion in April.

The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, disclosed this in its Money and Credit Statistics data for the review period.

The CBN further disclosed that credit to the private sector grew MoM by 1.9 percent to    N74.3 trillion in May from N72.93 trillion in April.

Consequently, net domestic credit rose MoM by 10.5 percent to N102.7 trillion in May from N92.9 trillion in April.

Last week, the Debt Management Office, DMO, Nigeria’s Public Debt report for Q1’24, said that the total public debt  surged  rose to N121.67 trillion in Q1’24   from N97.34 trillion in Q4’ 23, reflecting an increase of N24.33 trillion.

This trend is projected to  persist according to analysts at Cowry Asset Management Limited.

They said: “Cowry Research foresees no immediate relief for Nigeria’s debt levels and debt service costs.

“Financing costs are expected to continue consuming a larger portion of the Federal Government’s revenues, while the local currency remains weak against the dollar and the interest rate environment remains tight, reflecting the Central Bank’s monetary tightening measures.

“Given the government’s activities in the domestic capital market so far in 2024, it is anticipated that approximately N3 trillion will be raised from subsequent FGN Bond issuances.

“This is part of an effort to meet its funding target of N6.06 trillion in domestic borrowing and N1.77 trillion in foreign borrowings, as outlined in the N28.77 trillion 2024 budget.”