The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has officially rescheduled the 299th meeting of its Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), now set to take place on February 18 and 19, 2025. The meeting will be held at the CBN headquarters in Abuja, with deliberations beginning on Wednesday, February 18, and concluding on Thursday, February 19.
This meeting follows a series of scheduling changes. The first MPC meeting of 2025 was initially planned for January 27-28, then moved to February 17-18, before being postponed again. There were even discussions about shifting the meeting to March, contingent on the availability of updated economic data.
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“The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced that the 299th meeting of its Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) earlier scheduled for February 17 and 18, 2025, will now be held on Wednesday, February 19 and Thursday, February 20, 2025.” read a statement from the bank.
The change in schedule comes amid growing speculation regarding the timing of the MPC meeting, primarily due to delays in the release of the rebased Consumer Price Index (CPI) by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The CPI report, typically published on the 15th of each month, serves as a key metric for assessing inflation trends and is instrumental in guiding monetary policy decisions.
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The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has yet to release the rebased CPI, which was expected by the end of January, sparking concerns about the timing of crucial economic indicators ahead of the MPC meeting. Without the updated CPI data, the CBN risks making policy decisions based on outdated economic indicators, which could lead to financial misalignments.
The upcoming MPC meeting holds significant economic importance, as committee members will determine whether to maintain or adjust the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) in response to prevailing economic conditions. With Nigeria’s inflation rate recorded at 34.80 percent in December 2024, analysts are closely watching for potential interest rate hikes aimed at curbing inflationary pressures.