The capital importation report of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) for 2023 Q1 has shown that foreign investments to the manufacturing sector dropped by 35 per cent from $392.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2022 to $256 miliion in the first quarter of 2023.
The report shows that the total capital importation into Nigeria in Q1 2023 stood at $1.1 billion, lower than US$1.5 billion recorded in Q1 2022, indicating a decrease of 28 per cent.
However, capital importation into the production sector ranked second with 22 per cent share of total investments, while the banking sector recorded the highest inflow of $304.5 million, representing 26.89 per cent of total capital imported in Q1 2023.
The Bi-Annual Economic Review of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) had earlier shown that investment in the manufacturing sector dropped to N145.59 billion in the second half of 2022, compared to N160.88 billion in the corresponding half of 2021, representing a decline of N15.29 billion or 10 per cent.
It further declined by N32.8 billion or 18 per cent when compared with N178.39 billion recorded in the first half of the year. Manufacturing investment totalled N323.98 billion in 2022 as against N305.02 billion recorded in 2021.
MAN had previously attributed the dip in investments in the sector to the increasingly harsh business environment, caused by high energy costs, lack of access to funding, multiple taxation, among others, had scaled down investments into the sector.
According to MAN, the decrease in investment during the period was mainly caused by the government’s debt issues, high borrowing and energy expenses, and weak consumption.
