Jameel Ahmad, FXTM vice-president of market research, says it is going to be a busy week for the Nigerian economy as investors expect key figures to be unveiled this week.
Highlighting the expectations for the week, Ahmad said investors are relying on these numbers after a disappointing first quarter gross domestic product report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
“It is going to be a busy week for the Nigerian economy with a mixture of different economic releases likely to catch the attention of headlines,” he said in a mailed statement.
“This includes the unemployment rate for the final quarter of 2016 set to be announced on Tuesday, the latest Foreign Exchange Reserves data from the Central Bank of Nigeria that is being released on Wednesday and the Manufacturing PMI for May scheduled for Thursday.
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“The announcement of the latest Foreign Exchange Reserves is likely to catch the most attention mainly because of the positive news that in April, FX reserves climbed to their highest levels since September 2015.”
He said the Central Bank of Nigeria was beefing up its foreign exchange reserves on the weak dollar.
“There were previously high concerns over Nigeria’s FX reserves slipping below the $30bn level and there will be optimism that the CBN has been exploiting the recent USD weakness by replenishing its FX reserves.
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“The Manufacturing PMI for May will also be an important economic indicator to keep an eye out for as the data will provide some indications towards what momentum the Nigerian economy has carried into Q2 2017, especially after the disappointment that came about in late May when it was announced that the Nigerian economy had contracted for five consecutive quarters.”
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