Nigeria’s economic activities depress unbroken for 13 months, stoked by inflation and weak purchasing power
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Economic activities in Nigeria depressed for the 13th unbrokenmonth in July, stoked by unrelenting inflation and weak purchasing power under the watch of Bola Tinubu, whose incompetence has inflicted hardship on citizens since he became President on 29 May 2023.
Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) released on Wednesday shows composite PMI stood at 49.7 points, a contraction in economic activities for the thirteenth consecutive month.
But month-on-month (Mom), PMI improved in July by 1.9 points above 48.8 points in June 2024.
PMI measures the performance of business activities. An index above 50.0 points means expansion in business activities, below 50.0 points means contraction.
“On the output level, suppliers’ delivery time and stock of inventory expanded while new orders and employment contracted at a slower rate compared to the levels recorded in the previous month,” the CBN said.
PMI sectoral performance
The report shows PMI sectoral performance as follows:
- Services Sector – 50.3 points
- Industrial – 48.3 points
- Agricultural – 49.7 points
Up to 25 subsectors saw a decline in new orders, with pharmaceutical products reporting the highest levels of decline.
Nine subsectors had increased levels of new orders in, but Cement and Forestry remained unchanged.
“At 48.7 index points, the composite employment level indicated contraction in July 2024 for the seventh consecutive month. The index improved in July 2024 when compared to the 48.3 points recorded in the previous month,” the report added.
The prices of pharmaceutical products skyrocketed after the exit of British firm, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK).
The prices of antibiotics rose almost threefold – for examples, Augmentin 228mg (by 307 per cent), Augmentin 475mg (by 328 per cent) – between August 2023 when GSK left Nigeria and August 2024.
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