Nigeria’s remained in recession in the first quarter of this year. Its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) contracted by -0.52% (year-on-year) in real terms, representing the fifth consecutive quarter of contraction since Q1 2016. This was revealed by the country’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

Africa’s largest economy shrank by 1.5 percent in 2016 for its first annual contraction in 25 years, caused by lower oil revenues and a shortage of hard currency.

NBS states this is “0.15% higher than the rate recorded in the corresponding quarter of 2016 (revised to –0.67% from –0.36%) and higher by 1.21% points from rate recorded in the preceding quarter, (revised to –1.73% from –1.30%)”.

Quarter on quarter, real GDP growth was –12.92% and average oil production in the OPEC member state stood at 1.83 million barrels per day in the first quarter.