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International Journal of Business and Social Science

Vol. 3 No. 20 [Special Issue – October 2012]

The Effect of Interest Rate Fluctuation on the Economic Growth of Nigeria, 1970-2010
CHRIS O UDOKA, PhD
ANYINGANG ROLAND. A, M.Sc.

Department of Banking and Finance
Faculty of Management Sciences
University of Calabar
Calabar-Nigeria

Abstract
The main thrust of this study was to investigate the effect of interest rate fluctuation on the economic growth of
Nigeria. Two research hypotheses were formulated to investigate the relationship between interest rate and economic growth and the difference in economic growth before and after interest rate deregulation regime in
Nigeria. Ex-post facto research design was adopted for this study. Data for the study were obtained from the
Central Bank of Nigeria statistical bulletin. Data collected were analyzed and tested using the ordinary least square multiple regression analytical technique. The result of the findings revealed that: there existed an inverse relationship between interest rate and economic growth in Nigeria, meaning that increase in interest rate will decrease GDP of the country, thus retarding growth of the real sector. It was recommended that a strong monetary policy for Nigeria should be evolved that would enhance lending to the real sector economy for productive economic activities.

Key Words: Interest rate. Interest rate deregulation, gross domestic product
1.0 Introduction
The Nigerian economy has at different times witnessed enormous interest rate swings in different sectors of the economy since the 1970s and mid 1980s under the regulated regime. The preferential interest rates were based on the premise that the market, if freely applied would exclude some priority sectors. Thus, interest rates were adjusted through the “invisible hand” in order to promote increased level of investment in the various preferred sectors of the economy. Prominent among the preferred sectors were the agricultural, manufacturing and solid mineral sectors which were accorded priority and deposit money banks were directed to charge preferential interest rates on all loans to encourage the upsurge of small-scale industrialization which is a catalyst for economic development (Udoka, 2000).
Closely followed by the regulated interest rate regime was the interest rate reform, a policy evolved under the financial sector liberalization. The policy was put in place to achieve efficiency in the financial sector, thus, engendering financial deepening. In Nigeria, financial sector reforms started with the deregulation of interest rate in August, 1987 (Ikhide and Alawade, 2001). This according to Mckinnon (1973) and Shaw (1973) ignited financial repression which occurs mostly when a country imposes ceiling on deposit and lending nominal interest rate at a low level relative to inflation. The resulting low or negative interest rates discourage savings mobilization and the channeling of mobilized savings through the financial system. This has a negative effect on the quantity and quality of investment and hence economic growth.
The Nigerian government has since 1987 been pursuing a market –determine interest rate which does not permit a direct state intervention in the general direction of the economy (Nyong, 2007). In January, 1994 there was another policy reversal. This time the government had rightly introduced some measures of regulating interest rate management. It was claimed that there were wide variation and unnecessarily high rate under the complete deregulation of interest rate. Immediately, deposit rates were once again set up at 12 percent per annum while a ceiling of 21 percent per annum was fixed for lending. The gap of interest rates introduced in 1994 was retained in
1995 with little modification for flexibility.
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In October,1996, interest rates were fully deregulated with the banks given freedom to determine the structure of the interest rate in consultation with their customers. The apex bank (CBN) however, retained the discretionary power to intervene in the money market to ensure orderly development in interest rates. It should be remembered that this policy on interest rates deregulation has been in force in Nigeria since 1997-till date.
The crucial role of capital in the economic growth and development process had been recognized since the preKeynesian era, when the classical ideology monopolized economic thinking and policy formulation. Without doubt, every nation in the world today still lay tremendous emphasis on capital accumulation by stressing the need for raising the level of investment in relation to output. This emphasis is traceable to the short term fiscal policies and national development plans of both the developed and the developing economies over the past four decades. One important trend in developmental process which has remained consistent since civilization is that, all developed Nations are industrialized. Industrialization is associated with heavy investments financed through capital accumulation. Rapid and sustainable real economic growth is a necessary condition for economic development. Meanwhile, for growth to occur there is the need for a relatively stable macro-economic environment which is an indicator for low risk and a condition for attracting investment and boosting entrepreneurial activities. Entrepreneurs and investors will always shy away undertaking projects associated with high risks. By implication, even though a certain level of lending interest rate and inflation may be important in attracting investment. There is therefore the need to keep lending interest rate and inflation at a manageable limit in order to propel economic growth. The macro-economic policy formulation challenge confronting many developing countries today is how to achieve a single digit inflation, manageable trade and balance of payments deficits and higher savings and investments rates to finance long term economic growth. This problem has become more complex in today‟s world. It is on this premise that this article is evolved to investigate the effect of interest rate fluctuation on the economic growth of Nigeria.
The central objective of this paper is to analyze the effect of interest rate fluctuation on the economic growth of
Nigeria between 1970-2010.Other specific objectives include:
i)

To investigate the relationship existing between interest rate fluctuation and gross domestic product in
Nigeria;
ii) To compare the growth of the Nigerian economy before and after interest rate deregulation and how it could influence the growth of Nigeria, and finally to make relevant recommendations that could assist policy makers in Nigeria to formulate sound policy thrust that would put the nation in the right direction. In order to achieve the above stated objectives, the study is divided into five distinct sections. Section one is the introduction .This is closely followed by the literature review which enunciates the opinions and stance of scholars on interest rate regimes. The third section captures the research methodology, indicating the step by step approach of carrying out this research. The fourth section is on the analysis of salient data relating to interest rate as it affects economic growth. The remaining section of the paper draws some managerial implications that emerge from the discussions.

2. Theoretical consideration/literature review
There is a large body of literature on interest rate management. The important ones are the classical, the loanable funds, the Keynesian and the modern theory of interest. The classical theory posits that, rate of interest is determined by the supply and demand for capital by the expected productivity of capital. Both time preference and productivity of capital depend upon waiting or saving or thrift. The theory is also known as the supply and demand theory of savings.
The Keynesian liquidity preference theory determines the interest rate by the demand for and supply of money is a stock theory. It emphasizes that the rate of interest is purely a monetary phenomenon. It is a stock analysis because it takes the supply of money as given during the short run and determines the interest rate by liquidity preference or demand for money. On the other hand, the loanable funds theory is a flow theory that determines the interest rate by the demand for and supply of loanable funds. It involves the linking of interest rates with savings, dishoarding and bank money on the supply side. However, this work is anchored on the Keynesian theory .The idea by the classical theory that interest rate is determined by the intersection of the investment-demand schedule and the saving-schedule that is disclosing the relation of investment and saving to the rate of interest was somehow vague and of course misleading. Thus, giving rise to serious attack by the Keynesian school.
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Vol. 3 No. 20 [Special Issue – October 2012]

The point that as income rises, the saving-schedule shifts to the right does not give anyone a clear idea of what the rate of interest would be unless one had already known the income level (Jhingan, 2001).
2.1. Empirical evidence
In Nigeria, the long and difficult search for saleable variables in the money demands function has led to a number of empirical works. Empirical investigations into the nature of demand for money function remains perhaps then most extensively study area of economic research. Tomori(1972) in his pioneering work set out:
i. To examine the factors which have influenced the demand formerly in the Nigerian economy . ii. To establish whether there was a stable demand for money. iii. To examine what constituted a better definition of money in the Nigerian context.
He adopted a very simple linear model which expressed nominal (and real) narrow (and board) money as function of either nominal (or real) GDP- a proxy for income or both income and interest rate (official discount rate) representing the opportunity cost of holding money. The model was estimated using annual data for the period
1960 to 1970, while a test for stability was conducted by using a separate regression of the period 1960-1966 and comparing the coefficients obtained with that of full model. Applying the ordinary least square (OLS) technique, the following conclusions were made:
i.

Income is a significant variable in explaining variation in the demand for money, irrespective of which definition is adopted. ii. Income is a more important variable determining the demand for money than the interest rate. iii. The narrow definition of money seems to perform better than the broad definition of money. iv. An average real income seems to show a more significant relationship than normal income in the demand for money.
v. The coefficient of the interest rate is not significant and this seems to confirm the proposition that there is a stable demand for money in the period under review. Tomori's work generated a lot of reaction and was heavily criticized. Many economists were dissatisfied with his methodology and conclusion derived. This
TATOO debate “was a reaction to Tomori's pioneering work on the demand for money.
Ajaji (1974) employed the adjustment framework, specified a linear equation with real balances (and nominal balances), narrow and broad, expressed as a function of current nominal income, short-term interest rate and lagged (or nominal) balances. Using OLS technique to estimate the equations, Ajayi (1974) came to the following conclusions. i. ii. iii. iv. v.

Income alone explained about 1 percent when the wider definition of money is used
Interest rate has wrong sings and is statistically significant
The wider definition of money performs better, irrespective of whether real or nominal balance is adopted
Merest elasticity of the demand for money at the mean is low, while the income elasticity is high ranging from 1.5 to 1.9 for nominal money balance, (his indicating that demand for money is not sensitive to interest rate. However, income elasticity for real balance using both narrow and broad money is less than unity, The speed of adjustment is fast.

Teriba (1974) carried out a study which he included different interest rates (either individually or in combination) so as to throw more light on the substitutability between money and other financial assets, and to identify the closest substitute for money. He contended that estimating an aggregate demand function was not sufficient in itself, but that demand for its components should be specified and estimated as well. Employing the OLS technique and the long linear relationship between real balance (or its components) and its determinants, Teriba specified and estimated a short term demand for money function that related real balance to aggregate real national income, lagged real balances and a variety of interest rates -federal government Long-term interest rate
(RL) Central Bank short-term interest rate (RG) time deposit rate (RM) and savings deposit interest rate (RS). A war dummy was included to account for the civil war year 1967-1969. In the basis of his empirical work, Teriba arrived at the following conclusions
i.
ii.

money narrowly defined or its components, currently and demand deposits
Real income as the most important variable determining the demand for money as well as the components
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iii. iv. v. vi. vii. viii. ix.

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There are evidence that to some extent, treasury has are close substitute for money or currency, while savings deposits appears to be close substitutes for demand deposits and treasury bills
The war years had negative but insignificant effect on the demand for narrow money or its components
The speed of adjustment between actual and desired balances or narrow money and currency is very low, while in the case of demand deposits it is fairly fast
The short-run and long-run interest elasticity of demand of currency is not significant different from Zero while the short-run income elasticity is in all cases much greater than unity
In the case of demand deposit, the interest elasticizes are very low and insignificant, while the short-run income elasticity was never below 0.8 and the long-run elasticity was generally about 1.4
The result of the disaggregated equations for currency and demand deposit differ substantially from those of the aggregate equation and
What is money is basically an empirical equation

The study by OJo (1974) was carried out mainly to establish if a developing economy like Nigeria characterized by underdeveloped money market and lack of financial assets, the choice facing an individual is more between money and physical assets rather than between money and financial assets. Consequently, he specified and estimated (using the OLS techniques) two kinds of relationship (in Log-linear form) between money and determinants. He first specified real money balance as a function of current nominal income and interest rate.
Following the insignificance of interest rate variable in this equation, he specified real money balances as a function of nominal income and expected rate of inflation.
2.2.1

Determinants of interest rates in Nigeria

In Nigeria, interest rate is determined by the following factors:
i.
ii. iii. iv.

The investment demand: The higher the level of investment demand the higher the level of interest rates.
On the other hand, the lower the investments demand, the lower the level of interest rates.
The level of savings (or conversely the level of consumption): The higher the level of savings the lower the interest rate while, the borrower the level of savings, the higher the level of interest rates,
Demand for money or the liquidity preference: The higher the money demand, the lower the interest rate while the lower the money demand the higher the interest rates,
The quantity of money or money supply: In the Keynesian parlance as we increase money supply the interest rate will reduce.

3. Research methodology
This paper is on the effect of interest rate fluctuation on the economic growth of Nigeria from 19702010.secondary data were obtained from the CBN statistical bulletin of various years. The data would be analyzed, interpreted and tested in order to facilitate a valued conclusion on the effect of interest rate fluctuation in Nigeria. The major statistical tool used in the study is the multiple regression statistical technique. The model formulated for the study is given by;
GDP = F( INTR, U) --------------------------------------1
INTR =
Interest rate (prime)
GDP =
Gross demotic product (income)
To make the equation easily testable, we specify that:
GDP = b0 + b1 INTR+ U. -----------------------------------------------2
The sign constraints are that: b0>0, b1 >o, b2>0 and b3