The declining purchasing power of consumers has led to a 357.57 per cent rise in the inventory of unsold finished products of manufacturers in Nigeria to N1.24 trillion in the second half of 2024 (H1’24) compared to N271 billion recorded in the same period last year (H1’23).
The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, MAN, disclosed this in its H1’24 Economic Review made available to Vanguard, yesterday. This came as the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association, NECA, warned that if what led to these challenges is not addressed, it could herald another wave of business closures, higher unemployment rates and greater social dysfunction.
On its part, the Association of Small Business Owners of Nigeria, ASBON, noted that it is the removal of the import ban that led to high flooding of the Nigeria market with imported products and lowered competitiveness of made-in-Nigeria products.
In the report, MAN attributed the “alarming increase” to declining consumer purchasing power to escalating inflation, subsidy removal, and devaluation of the naira.
