Nigeria’s economy hammered by first full year of contraction in 25 years

Nigeria, Africa’s most-populous country, has suffered four successive quarters of contraction, mostly due to lower oil prices and output and resulting fuel shortages Nigeria’s economy shrank in 2016, the first year of contraction since 1991.

The National Bureau of Statistics announced this on Tuesday, saying the December quarter was its fourth quarter running of shrinking. Gross domestic product was 1.3% lower in the December quarter than in the previous fourth quarter after shrinking 2.2% in the September quarter. 

The median of 10 economist estimates compiled by Bloomberg was for the economy to shrink 1.4%. GDP contracted 1.5% for all of 2016, the first full-year drop in 25 years, according to International Monetary Fund figures.