Godwin Emefiele, CBN governor

A Don, Prof. Uche Uwaleke, has expressed optimism that Nigeria would get out of recession soon as predicted by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele.

Uwaleke, the Head of Banking and Finance, Nasarawa State University, Keffi, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abuja.

The CBN governor had expressed optimism that the present economic recession in the country would end by the end of June or latest by the third quarter of 2017.

Emefiele said his assertion was based on what he described as emerging positive economic indicators.

According to Uwaleke, the CBN Governor’s expectation of a turn around by end of the second quarter was realistic.

He said, “I share in the optimism of those who think that the country will be out of recession, sooner than later.

“The tell-tale signs include the relative stability in the international oil price above 50 dollars per barrel and improved liquidity in the forex market as a result of sustained interventions by CBN.

“The special forex window for manufacturers and foreign investors, the gradual moderation of inflationary pressure and release of substantial proportion of the capital expenditure provision in the 2016 budget are sinew signs.

“Other areas include improvement in the Purchasing Managers’ Index and some other manufacturing performance measures disclosed by `World Economics’, a London-based research firm.’’

The don said the 2.19 per cent growth projection in the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan for 2017 had also reinforced Emefiele’s realistic expectation on the nation’s economic recovery

. (NAN)