More money in circulation but FG entered new year with deficit – CBN report

The report published by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Monday revealed that, as at the last check, N2.2 trillion were outside banks. Compared to the previous quarter, this shows a 9.9% increase in the total money in circulation. However, due to unmet revenue expectation, the Federal Government recorded deficit in its earnings and expenditure coming into 2020.

The value of money in circulation may have been due to seasonal factors though as consumers withdrew more cash for upkeep and festive spending during the last holiday. The more money in circulation the better for businesses, especially those in the food, hospitality, entertainment, travels,retail and fashion sectors.

Meanwhile deposits at the Central Bank also witnessed a 3.6% increase buoyed by positive actions by the Federal Government and commercial banks. In sum, the shares of deposit from the Federal Government, the commercial banks, and private sectors at the apex bank were 47.4%, 35.9%, and 16.7% respectively.

However, Federal revenue collected over that period fell short of expectation. That was, in part, due to shortfalls in oil and non-oil revenue components. In the end, retained revenue for the FG stood at N938.72 billion while expenditure amount to N2.07 trillion. The government was left a deficit of N1.13 trillion entering the new year.