The Central Bank of Nigeria has increased the monetary policy rate to 27.50 per cent from 27.25 per cent.

The Central Bank of Nigeria governor, Yemi Cardoso, made the announcement shortly after the meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee held at the CBN headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday.

Mr Cardoso noted the MPC voted unanimously to raise the MPR by 25 basis points from 27.25% to 27.50%; and retain the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) at 50% for Deposit Money Banks and 16% for merchant banks.

He noted that the committee retained the Liquidity Ratio (LR) at 30% and Asymmetric Corridor at +500/-100 basis points around the MPR.

This is the sixth consecutive time the apex bank would increase the monetary policy rate in 2024 alone.

At the end of its meeting in September, the apex bank raised the MPR by 50 basis points to 27.25% from 26.75%. The hike came against the backdrop of most analysts’ projections of a hold on rates.

However, experts have expressed concerns over the potential impacts of interest rates on the economy.

Though the move is expected to reduce money supply in circulation, thereby curbing inflation, there are concerns that higher interest rates could hinder business growth, particularly for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), in the country.