Nigeria’s total public debt stock comprising the external and domestic debts of the Federal Government, the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) stood at $73.213 billion or N22.429 trillion.
These were almost about the same as the figures of $73.208 billion and N22.38 trillion recorded in June 2018.
External debt declined by 2.02 per cent to US$21.592 billion due largely to the redemption by Nigeria of a US$500 million Eurobond which matured on July 12, 2018.
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The Eurobond which was issued for a tenor of 5 years in 2013, was the first Eurobond maturity for Nigeria and Nigeria’s ability to repay it seamlessly, boosted Nigeria’s position as a good credit in the international Capital Market.
The domestic debt of the Federal Government, states and the FCT grew by 1.19 per cent from N15.629 trillion in June 2018 to N15.814 trillion in September 2018. The increase of N185 billion was attributed to the FG’s N135 billion and states and FCT N50 Billion.
The combination of an increase in the level of domestic debt and decrease in the external debt stock, resulted in a slight shift in the portfolio composition.
As at September 30, 2018, the share of domestic debt was 70.51 per cent compared to 69.83 per cent in June 2018. This trend is expected to be reversed in the fourth quarter of 2018 as the new external borrowing of N849 billion (about US$2.78 billion) provided in the 2018 Appropriation Act is expected to be raised within the quarter.
