Nigeria's GDP growth slows by 2.31% in final full quarter of Buhari

Nigeria's GDP growth slows by 2.31% in final full quarter of Buhari admin

News Agency Of Nigeria

May 25, 2023 12:08 PM

The reduction in GDP performance is attributed to the adverse effects of the cash crunch experienced during the quarter.

President Muhammadu Buhari leaves office on May 29, 2023 [Bernard Menigault/Alamy]

Nigeria's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth slowed by 2.31% in the first quarter of 2023 on a year-on-year basis.

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) made this known in the Nigerian Gross Domestic Product Report Q1 2023 released in Abuja on Thursday.

However, the growth, the NBS said represented a decline from 3.52% in the preceding quarter and 3.11% recorded in the first quarter of 2022.

The reduction in GDP performance is attributed to the adverse effects of the cash crunch experienced during the quarter, it noted.

Growth was largely driven by the services sector, which recorded a growth of 4.35% and contributed 57.29% to the aggregate GDP.

The agriculture sector grew by -0.90%, lower than the growth of 3.16% recorded in the first quarter of 2022.

According to the NBS, although the growth of the industry sector improved to 0.31% relative to – 6.81% recorded in the first quarter of 2022, agriculture, and the industry sectors contributed less to the aggregate GDP in the quarter under review compared to the first quarter of 2022.

"The agriculture sector grew by -0.90%, lower than the growth of 3.16% recorded in the first quarter of 2022.

"Although the growth of the industry sector improved to 0.31% relative to – 6.81% recorded in the first quarter of 2022, agriculture and the industry sectors contributed less to the aggregate GDP in the quarter under review compared to the first quarter of 2022," a part of the release said.

The NBS disclosed that the real growth of the oil sector was –4.21% on a year-on-year basis in Q1 2023, indicating an increase of 21.83% relative to the rate recorded in the corresponding quarter of 2022 at -26.04%.

It said growth increased by 9.18% when compared to Q4 2022, which was –13.38%, and on a quarter-on-quarter basis, the oil sector recorded a growth rate of 20.68% in Q1 2023.

The sector, according to the stats office, contributed 6.21% to the total real GDP in Q1 2023, down from the figure recorded in the corresponding period of 2022 and up from the preceding quarter, where it contributed 6.63% and 4.34%, respectively.

As for the non-oil sector, it grew by 2.77% in real terms during the reference quarter, lower by 3.30% points compared to the rate recorded in the same quarter of 2022 and 1.67% points lower than the fourth quarter of 2022.

This sector was driven in the first quarter of 2023 mainly by information and communication telecommunication; financial and insurance (financial institutions); trade; manufacturing (food, beverage and tobacco); construction; and transportation and storage (Road Transport), accounting for positive GDP growth.

In real terms, the report showed that the non-oil sector contributed 93.79% to the nation’s GDP in the first quarter of 2023, higher than the share recorded in the first quarter of 2022, which was 93.37% and lower than the fourth quarter of 2022 recorded as 95.66%.

News Agency Of Nigeria