THE Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has called on the Federal Government to adopt more prudent fiscal policy measures to effectively manage inflation and address the issue of high-interest rate and exchange rate volatility in the country.
Director General, LCCI, Dr Chinyere Almona, made the call in a statement made available to Vanguard, yesterday, in reaction to the 2023 second quarter Gross Domestic Product (Q2’23 GDP) report published by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) last week. She noted that the deregulation of the downstream oil sector and exchange rate volatility resulted in a significant contraction of the transport sector and sub-optimal growth in manufacturing and trade.
Meanwhile, CEO, Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), Dr. Muda Yusuf, said the implementation of the reforms by the government require a delicate balancing act to ensure an inclusive economic transition.
Recall that NBS had reported that the nation’s economy grew by 2.51% in Q2’23 compared to 2.31% in Q1’23, The growth implies 11th consecutive quarter of economic growth, though lower than the 3.54% recorded in Q1’22.
Almona said that the tamed growth may be attributed to the challenging economic conditions caused by fuel subsidy removal and exchange rate harmonization.
Her words: “LCCI notes that the significant contraction recorded in transport and storage and the sub-optimal growth in manufacturing and trade largely reflect the deregulation of the downstream oil sector, exchange rate volatility, and weak consumer demand.
