The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) which oversees and publishes statistics for Nigeria, on Wednesday released the Capital Importation report for 2018 with the economy attracting a total investment of $16.81 billion during the period.
NBS in the report stated that the investment inflow of $16.81 billion for 2018 represented an increase of $4.59 billion or 37.49 per cent when compared to the $12.22 billion attracted in the 2017 fiscal period. The report explained that the largest amount of capital importation by type was received through portfolio investment, which accounted for $11.8 billion or 70.20 per cent of total investment inflow.
This, it noted, was followed by other investment, which accounted for $3.81 billion or 22.69 per cent of total capital, while Foreign Direct Investment had $1.19 billion or 7.11 per cent of total capital imported in 2018.
The report read in part, "The total value of capital importation into Nigeria stood at $2.14 billion in the fourth quarter of 2018. This represents a decrease of 25.05 per cent compared to Q3 2018 and 60.24 per cent decrease compared to the fourth quarter of 2017.
By sectors, the report stated that investment in shares dominated 2018 reaching $10.42 billion of the total capital Importation in 2018. This was followed by investment in banking, $2.02 billion; financing, $1.48 million; servicing, $1.29 million; production, $670.85 million; agriculture, $289.48 million; oil and gas, $133.51 million; and trading, $131.56 million.
In terms of destination, the report stated that the United Kingdom emerged as the top source of capital investment in Nigeria in 2018 with $6 billion. This, it noted, accounted for 35.74 per cent of the total capital inflow in 2018.
This was followed by the United States with $3.57 billion, South Africa, $1.15 billion; the United Arab Emirates, $937.19 million; Belgium, $886.08 million; and Singapore, $780.87 million. Others are Ghana, $626.44 million; Mauritius, $560.87 million; The Netherlands, $373.08 million; and Switzerland, $355.98 million.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udo Udoma, in a statement issued on Wednesday said that the faithful implementation of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan had started to yield result following improvement in major economic indicators.
The minister gave some of the measures introduced under the ERGP to include establishment of investors' and exporters' foreign exchange window by the Central Bank of Nigeria to deepen the market, boost liquidity and accommodate all foreign exchange requirements; setting up the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council to improve the country's ease of doing business ranking.
Others are the establishment of Nigeria Industrial Policy and Competitiveness Advisory Council as a vehicle for partnering with the private sector on the industrialisation agenda, and partnering with the private sector on infrastructure development through various models such as Road Trust Fund Scheme among others.