ABUJA, Dec 14 – Nigeria’s Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said on Wednesday she wants interest rates to be lowered next year after a “tight” 2012 budget proposal was read to the national assembly this week.
President Goodluck Jonathan told the national assembly on Tuesday spending would rise to 4.749 trillion naira next year from 4.48 trillion naira in 2011.
Okonjo-Iweala said the Excess Crude Account, where Africa’s largest crude exporter saves oil earnings over a benchmark price, contained 4.2 billion by the end of November. Earlier in that month government removed $2 billion from the ECA for ‘various projects’.
Source: Reuters Africa newsletter
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