Following the consistent crash of the Naira against the dollar,
Nigeria's economy has lost its place as the largest economy in Africa to
South Africa. This is according to a new report by Bloomberg and the
IMF.
According to the new reports, South Africa's rand had
gained more than 16 percent against the dollar from the beginning of
2016 and Nigeria’s naira lost more than a third of its value when the
Central Bank introduced its new policy on Foreign Exchange in June.
The reports states that South Africa’s economy is currently at $301
billion at the rand’s current exchange rate with the dollar while
Nigeria’s GDP is at $296 billion, based on gross domestic product of
2015 published by the International Monetary Fund.
Declining oil prices, reduced oil output due to the activities of
militants in the Niger Delta region and shortage of foreign currency are
among the reasons Nigeria’s economy shrank by 0.4 percent in three
months early this year.
For South Africa, decline in farming and mining output caused it economy
to reduce by 0.2 percent.
The report adds that although Nigeria is unlikely to be unseated as
Africa’s largest economy in the long run, “the momentum that took it
there in the first place is now long gone.”
Title : South Africa overtakes Nigeria as Africa’s largest economy
Description : Following the consistent crash of the Naira against the dollar, Nigeria's economy has lost its place as the largest economy in Africa...
