Nigeria's central bank left its monetary policy rate at 14.0 percent, as expected, noting the third consecutive quarter of economic growth in the fourth quarter of last year, continued moderation in inflation and continued stability in the naira's exchange rate.

The Federal government has announced the offering of US$2.5 billion aggregate principal amount of dual series notes under its Global Medium Term Note Programme.

The January inflation rate, measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), has further dropped to 15.13 per cent from 15.37 per cent recorded in December last year, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said yesterday in Abuja.

Nigeria's central bank left its monetary policy rate (MPR) at 14.0 percent, as expected, saying a loosening of policy now would boost growth and demand but also aggravate the upward trend in consumer prices and generate pressure on the exchange rate, ultimately leading to a deterioration in the current account balance though higher imports.