Abstract

This study used monthly data from 2003 to 2017 to analyze the effects of USD/NG₦ exchange-rate volatility on Nigeria’s economic growth. The results from generalized autoregressive conditional heteroscedasticity (GARCH) and vector error correction model (VECM) analyses indicated that USD/NG₦ volatility had a significant effect on the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth. The results of the Granger causality/block exogeneity Wald tests and impulse-response functions also indicated that USD/NG₦ volatility had a significant negative effect on the country’s GDP growth. Moreover, USD/NG₦ exchange-rate volatility was found to exhibit short-term unidirectional causality for economic growth. However, a bidirectional relationship was confirmed between narrow money supply and economic growth. Yet, it was also found that the interbank exchange rate, which is a semiofficial Forex window, had little effect on Nigeria’s economic growth—a strong indication that a large portion of the productive sector lacks access to this Forex platform.

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