By Nigeria’s stock market declined by N25 billion on Tuesday following the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC)’s decision to retain key interest rates.
At the 299th MPC meeting held on February 19-20, 2025, the committee voted to:
Maintain the MPR at 27.5%
Retain the asymmetric corridor at +500/-100
Keep the CRR for Deposit Money Banks at 50%
Hold the CRR for Merchant Banks at 16%
Maintain the liquidity ratio at 30%
As a result, the All-Share Index (ASI) fell by 41.01 points, marking a 0.04% decline to 108,568.50 points. This caused market capitalization to drop to N67.659 trillion, wiping out N25 billion in value.
The decline was driven by price losses in key stocks, including Aradel Holdings, Africa Prudential, Nigerian Breweries, Oando, and Ikeja Hotel.
Analysts suggest that the market’s reaction reflects investors’ concerns over tight monetary policies and their impact on liquidity and business growth.
