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By Elizabeth Adegbesan
Businesses’ confidence in the macro economy rose significantly to 7.9 index points in May 2026 from 3.9 index points in the preceding month of April 2026, even as insecurity, multiple taxation, and high interest rates continued to pose major operational challenges to businesses during the period.
This was contained in the latest Central Bank of Nigeria’s Business Expectation Report, which showed that the respondents’ sentiment on the economy reflected a mixed outlook.
The improvement in sentiment was largely supported by perceived easing in governance and policy-related concerns (15.7 percent), and continued progress in economic diversification (15.6 percent).
“More cautious sentiments reflect ongoing energy-related challenges (26.7 per cent) and elevated geopolitical uncertainties (7.7 percent)”, CBN added.
The report showed that all the sectors expressed optimism about the macroeconomy and anticipated an increase in business activity in the next month but employment expectations remained negative across sectors.
In the case of consumers, they were pessimistic about the macro economy as the Overall Consumer Sentiments in May 2026 stood at -16.8 index points compared to -15.1 index points recorded in April 2026.
The latest Consumer Expectation Survey report of the CBN showed that the Economic Conditions index recorded –19.5 points in May 2026, indicating a pessimistic outlook on current economic conditions among households.
Likewise, Family Financial Situation Index stood at –22.7 points in May 2026, reflecting respondents’ pessimistic views about their finances. The Family Income Sentiments recorded -8.3 index points in May 2026, indicating moderate pessimism on Family income.
“Over the next six months, the Consumer Confidence Index was optimistic at 6.8 points, reflecting optimism driven by positive outlook on family income and economic conditions,” CBN added.
In another light, CBN, in its latest Inflation Survey Report, said the inflation expectations index stood at 44.8 points in May 2026, adding however that Nigerians expect moderation to 26.2 index points over the next 6months.
“Among businesses, large businesses reported the highest perception of high inflation (72.5 percent), while medium businesses reported the lowest (64 percent)”.